WHILE two Englishmen were settling the title race in Manchester and a Latvian was being hailed as the saviour of the South coast, the North East staged what was very much a sideshow to the main events elsewhere - and how it showed.

But the cosmopolitan nature of the Premiership being what it is, an Australian goalkeeper and a German midfielder could still have snatched a minor share of the spotlight if their spectacular shootout had been allowed to run its full course.

In a match that had little meaning for either side in terms of League positions, Blackburn Rovers keeper John Filan and Newcastle midfielder Didi Hamann enjoyed a rare individual dual.

Sadly, it lasted for only 45 minutes before the game became a perfect reflection of Rovers' season.

They spent most of the second half, because of injuries, with a teenage central defender - Martin "Tiny" Taylor - playing as a stand-in striker and that just about summed up this sorry campaign. With three players having to be substituted by manager Brian Kidd before an hour had elapsed, it said much about their problems.

And it also robbed a full house at St James's Park of witnessing the confrontation between Filan and Hamann reach an explosive climax.

Instead, the match petered out into a tame draw after Hamann had fired a second-half equaliser to Jason Wilcox's well-taken opener.

But only Filan had been substituted by Tim Flowers.

Not knowing quite what to expect from a clash between one of the FA Cup finalists, Newcastle, and a team already relegated, Rovers, the battle between Filan and Hamann promised to enliven an anti-climactic afternoon.

Fire one: Hamann's brilliant 30-yard volley produced an equally-magnificent save from Filan who not only kept out the shot but held onto it.

Fire two: An indirect free kick on the six-yard line was touched back to the German whose ferocious drive was blocked by Filan on the charge.

Fire three: Hamann's turbo-charged free kick, from just outside the penalty area, cannoned into the defensive wall but you can bet Filan had it covered!

With the Rovers keeper feeling a thigh injury, however, he was replaced at half time and the inter-continental clash was over. Well, it was if you discount the super strike Hamann delivered within minutes of Filan's departure from the scene.

It beat the freshly-arrived Flowers but, in the absence of the rested Alan Shearer and Duncan Ferguson, the German looked Newcastle's only option of winning the match.

Kidd has complained in the past that, even though the team have comfortably averaged more than a point a game since he arrived, Rovers have not managed to turn enough of those draws into wins to save their season and Premiership status.

In many respects this was a typical example.

"I think we have only lost seven of the 23 games since I came here," said Kidd. "But we haven't been able to turn enough draws into wins."

Yesterday on Tyneside was another typical example. Rovers took the lead but could not hold onto it.

The atmosphere was strange though Newcastle made the early running with Robert Lee just wide, Filan saving from Nolberto Solano and some good defending, not only by the back men but also others such as Lee Carsley.

Twice Filan denied Hamann before Rovers grabbed a 37th-minute lead with a well-worked goal, due as much to Ashley Ward's persistence as anything else.

Catching a ball from Callum Davidson on the left-hand bye-line, Ward was not favourite to get the better of Aaron Hughes but he did. A neat pull back and Wilcox shot low into the corner with his left foot.

Rovers' enthusiastic travelling fans earned a round of sympathetic applause from their home counterparts when they signalled the goal with a chorus of "One-nil to the Nationwide . . . ".

Newcastle were clearly stunned after they had failed to make the most of their pressure but they began the second half in charge and soon equalised.

Gary Croft twice almost gifted the Geordies a leveller and the pressure told in the 51st minute. A couple of passes inside from the left flank and Hamann was able to take the ball in his stride and, from outside the penalty area, struck a low shot out of the reach of Flowers.

Following some Newcastle pressure, Rovers came back into the game, operating 4-4-2 after Taylor's introduction, and both Wilcox and Carlsey might have won it.

Arguably the best move saw Damien Johnson and Keith Gillespie set up Wilcox for a first-time shot which the keeper somehow managed to flick over the top.

Then, in stoppage time, Carlsey's sudden volley from a Wilcox corner brought a touch of top quality from keeper Steve Harper.

To be perfectly honest, there was not too much to write home about. That wasn't surprising in the circumstances but this traumatic season had yet one more twist.

Having filled in my fixed-odds coupon at the ground - a few quid on a 1-1 draw - I forgot to put the bet on!

It certainly has been one of those seasons.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.