As 1971 arrived, transformation was underway both on and off the pitch at the North East club. With squad members assembling at their home ground for the traditional pre-season photograph in late July, manager Joe Harvey faced a period of significant change while plans to modernise their outdated stadium would also commence.
Twelve months after their celebrated Inter-Cities Fairs Cup triumph, Harvey elected to reshape his squad. Established figures set to leave the Tyneside area within months comprised Wyn Davies, John Craggs, John McNamee, Alan Foggon, Benny Arentoft and Keith Dyson.
Forward John Tudor had joined from Sheffield United during the early months of the year, while through the entrance doors came Malcolm Macdonald, a 21-year-old from the capital secured from Luton Town in a club-record £180,000 deal.
Brimming with self-assurance, the quick and forceful centre-forward would prove a prolific scorer, fan favourite, and establish himself as one of the club’s finest players during his five-year spell at Gallowgate.
Additional arrivals were expected, with shrewd operator Harvey signing centre-half Pat Howard alongside a potentially outstanding midfield partnership of Terry Hibbitt and Tony Green.
Few recall the opening two league matches of the 1971-72 term, a defeat at Crystal Palace and a stalemate at Tottenham. However, five and a half decades later, the third encounter – a home fixture against a Liverpool side containing youthful Kevin Keegan – has achieved legendary status among supporters.
It signalled the spectacular emergence of Supermac, whose three-goal salvo guided the Magpies to a 3-2 triumph in a match where he was carried from the field with serious concussion near the conclusion. The following day’s Sunday Sun carried a front-page declaration stating that Macdonald had delivered a knockout blow. The match report described how Macdonald’s powerful left foot struck Liverpool three times and steadied Newcastle’s uncertain fortunes each time.
Rather than spark an impressive run, the success was succeeded by a spell of inconsistent results which left the club dangerously positioned near the bottom by October, prompting the purchase of Scottish international playmaker Tony Green from Blackpool for £150,000 to strengthen the group.
Performance improved and victories against Southampton, Nottingham Forest, West Bromwich Albion, and West Ham enabled the Magpies to steadily ascend the standings.
When January 1972 arrived, following prolonged disagreements between the club and local authority and various proposals that remained unbuilt, St James’ Park would finally receive essential improvements. The venue had undergone minimal alteration since the 1920s, with one publication describing it as the most dilapidated stadium in the country.
The enormous uncovered terracing of the Popular Side was to be torn down, replaced by a freshly constructed Brutalist-style cantilever East Stand containing seats and standing room. The ambitious scheme to install four cantilever stands and transform St James’ Park into a cutting-edge venue over the subsequent decade would ultimately fail to materialise. For the remainder of that season and into the next, a quarter of the stadium resembled a construction zone.
The latter portion of the campaign showed marked improvement on the opening half – apart from the notorious 2-1 reversal against non-league Hereford Town in an embarrassing FA Cup third round replay. In an unexpected turn, a week subsequently, the side travelled to Old Trafford and defeated a Manchester United lineup containing Best, Charlton and Law with room to spare.
With Macdonald and Tudor posing a constant threat in attack, and Hibbitt and Green controlling the middle of the park, results stabilised and were generally satisfactory. Victories came against Southampton, Leicester, Arsenal, Derby, Leeds, and West Brom – though a 5-0 hammering by Liverpool at Anfield appeared to serve as retribution for that 3-2 success earlier in the season.
Upon the campaign’s conclusion, Newcastle United found themselves in 11th position – arguably beneath where their collective ability suggested they belonged. The majority of the squad embarked on a short Far East tour comprising summer exhibition fixtures – including a contest in Hong Kong against Pelé’s club side Santos.
Meanwhile, Sir Alf Ramsey pursued the club’s new terrace hero after Malcolm Macdonald plundered an extraordinary 30 goals during his opening season. His performances secured international recognition as Newcastle’s first England full international since Ivor Broadis in 1954 – and the final one until Chris Waddle in 1985.