Newcastle’s near misses: The chances that slipped by during 70 years of hurt

Newcastle have not won a domestic trophy since 1955 - (PA Archive)

Newcastle moved a step closer to ending a 70-year wait for a major domestic trophy when they saw off Arsenal to reach a second Carabao Cup final in three seasons.

The Magpies completed a 4-0 aggregate victory over the Gunners at St James’ Park on Wednesday and will now face either Liverpool or Tottenham at Wembley on Sunday, March 16.

Here, the PA news agency looks at Newcastle’s near misses on home soil since winning the FA Cup in 1955.

Liverpool 3 Newcastle 0 – 1974 FA Cup final

Future Newcastle boss Kevin Keegan scored twice in Liverpool’s 3-0 FA Cup final victory over the Magpies in 1974 (PA) (PA Archive)

Nineteen years after their sixth and last FA Cup triumph, the Magpies, who had Malcolm Macdonald spearheading their armoury, headed back to Wembley with high hopes.

But they were undone by a man who would later play a significant role on Tyneside as Kevin Keegan scored twice, either side of Steve Heighway’s strike, to send the trophy to Merseyside.

Man City 2 Newcastle 1 – 1976 League Cup final

Peter Barnes and Dennis Tueart scored as Manchester City beat Newcastle 2-1 in the 1976 League Cup final (PA Archive) (PA Archive)

The Magpies’ bid for a first League Cup success ended in disappointment despite Alan Gowling cancelling out Peter Barnes’ early opener.

A minute into the second half, Dennis Tueart dashed their hopes with a spectacular overhead kick after Tommy Booth had headed Willie Donachie’s cross back across goal.

Premiership 1995-96

Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United overhauled Newcastle to claim the 1995-96 Premiership title (John Giles/PA) (PA Archive)

Keegan’s Newcastle were in pole position to claim a first league title since 1927 and a fifth in total when they went 12 points clear of Manchester United at the top of the Premier League table in January 1996.

However, they won only seven of their last 15 games as United took 40 points from a possible 45 – three of them from an Eric Cantona-inspired 1-0 win at St James’ on March 4 – to claim the title by four.

Arsenal 2 Newcastle 0 – 1998 FA Cup final

Marc Overmars and Nicolas Anelka ruined Newcastle’s FA Cup dream in 1998 (Owen Humphreys/PA) (PA Archive)

A cup run which included a hard-fought victory over non-league Stevenage in the fourth – a tie which went to a replay as Alan Shearer returned to the starting line-up after a lengthy injury lay-off – eventually resulted in another trip to Wembley for Kenny Dalglish’s men.

However, goals from Marc Overmars and Nicolas Anelka either side of half-time saw Arsenal complete the league and cup double.

Man Utd 2 Newcastle 0 – 1999 FA Cup final

Manchester United beat Newcastle in the FA Cup final on their way to an unprecedented Treble in 1999 (Owen Humphreys/PA) (PA Archive)

Having led Chelsea to FA Cup glory in 1997, Ruud Gullit took the Magpies back to Wembley two years later, intent on a repeat.

This time, it was their misfortune to come across a Treble-chasing Manchester United side, with goals from Teddy Sheringham and Paul Scholes doing the damage.

Man Utd 2 Newcastle 0 – 2023 Carabao Cup final

Manchester United were the victors once again when the sides met at Wembley in the 2023 Carabao Cup final (David Davies/PA) (PA Archive)

Newcastle’s first trip to Wembley in 24 years was delivered by Eddie Howe as his Saudi-backed resurgence promised to pay dividends much sooner than expected.

However, once again they could not reproduce the form which had got them there as Casemiro and Marcus Rashford both struck within six first-half minutes to extend the wait.