If West Ham are to fulfil David Moyes’s wishes and hang on in the race for the Champions League places, they must find a spark to jolt them back into life.
Boos greeted the final whistle after a frustrating afternoon for all at London Stadium.
While the Hammers continued to pick up points with this scrappy draw against relegation battling Newcastle, they are in need of something to continue their remarkable season.
Too many players look jaded and well off the levels that fans have come to expect from them and a solution does not seem forthcoming.
Moyes has called for someone to stand up and deliver a rocket but too many are coasting through games, lacking the energy to turn one point into three.
Newcastle arrived without the leadership of Kieran Trippier and the dynamism of Allan Saint-Maximin, the latter having caused West Ham so many problems in the past.
David Moyes had his own injury issues, with Vladimir Coufal and Manuel Lanzini not in the squad. Ryan Fredericks and Said Benrahma both came in.
Newcastle didn’t start like a side without their two best players, catching West Ham napping in the opening minutes as Joelinton saw an effort turned behind before Jacob Murphy and Joe Willock both had shots blocked.
Chris Wood found himself in the wrong place at the wrong time as he blocked Ryan Fraser’s attempt from Matt Targett’s cross, the Hammers struggling to get a grip on things.
It was an effort from their man of the moment that got West Ham fans engaged after 20 minutes, Jarrod Bowen latching onto a cushioned header from Ryan Fredericks before seeing his shot tipped onto the bar by Martin Dubravka.
In heavy rain and a dampened atmosphere, neither side were truly getting a hold of the game and it took another set-piece goal from the Hammers to nudge ahead in a scrappy first-half.
Michail Antonio was bundled to the floor by Emil Krafth on the edge of the Newcastle box, a spot almost tailor-made for Aaron Cresswell to guide a superb ball in behind and into the path of Dawson, who could not have asked for an easier header to nod down and in for his second goal in as many games.
Despite taking the lead, West Ham still looked unsure of themselves at the back and it was a rare mistake from Declan Rice which allowed Newcastle level on the stroke of half-time.
After Krafth’s cross had been allowed to drift down the the left hand side, Fraser was worked in behind Fredericks and saw Rice head the cross back towards his own goal, where Willock was able to force his way between the West Ham defenders to prod the ball onto the far-post and just over the line, confirmed by the referee’s watch.
Newcastle’s wide men were having plenty of joy down West Ham’s right and Moyes acted the break, hooking Fredericks - already on a yellow - to be replaced by Ben Johnson.
Joe Willock is finally back in the goals for Newcastle!
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) February 19, 2022
His first of the season comes from a brilliant improvised finish 👌 pic.twitter.com/krmUAk6w4T
It remained an open game in the second-half but the Hammers continued to lack energy, as they have done too often in recent weeks. Rice and Tomas Soucek, usually such a force in midfield, were weary while Bowen struggled to find his way into space behind the Newcastle defence.
Antonio - with just two goals in his last 16 Premier League games, again looked way off the form he showed in the early part of the season, but Moyes lacks the options to replace him when it is not working.
Instead he sent on Nikola Vlasic for Benrahma but still West Ham could not get going. Newcastle were running down the clock and stopping any attacking moves with questionable challenges.
It is another point on the board - something Moyes can be pleased with when they are not playing at their best - but the Scot will not want to allow this drift to continue.
