Aston Villa 0 Newcastle 0 - Report and pictures
Aston Villa avoided making unwanted history as they ended an 11 game losing streak with a 0-0 draw against Newcastle.
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Defeat to the Magpies would have seen the already-relegated claret and blues set a new club record for successive league defeats.
But despite being under the cosh for most of the game, they held firm to claim a first point under caretaker boss Eric Black.
Jack Colback and Alexsander Mitrovic both missed good chances for the visitors, who now look likely to join Villa in the Championship next season.
This was, above all else, a disastrous result for the visitors, who will be relegated if Sunderland beat Everton in midweek.
While the point means almost nothing for Villa in the grand scheme of things, it did at least see them stop the rot.
It give home fans a little reason to cheer - even if the majority of their glee was directed at those in the visiting section.
Black made two changes to the team beaten 3-2 at Watford last week, with Scott Sinclair replacing the injured Rudy Gestede up front and Carlos Sanchez drafted into midfield.
Aly Cissokho's suspension meant a defensive reshuffle, with Kevin Toner moved to play at left wing-back.
Leandro Bacuna moved back to play as part of a central defensive three, alongside Ciaran Clark and Joleon Lescott.
Aston Villa (5-3-2): Bunn, Hutton, Toner, Lescott, Clark, Bacuna, Gana, Sanchez, Westwood, Sinclair (Hepburn-Murphy 90), Ayew.
Subs not used: Richards, Lyden, Gil, Grealish, Adama, Guzan (gk).
Newcastle (4-4-2): Darlow, Anita, Mbemba, Lascelles, Dummett, Townsend, Tiote (Perez 68), Colback (De Jong 90), Sissoko, Wijnaldum, Cisse (Mitrovic 52).
Subs not used: Shelvey, Janmaat, Taylor, Woodman (gk).[/breakout]
More than 500 fans took part in a pre-match protest against owner Randy Lerner, marching from the Holte Pub to the directors' entrance.
Inside the ground, the mood was far lighter as home supporters seemed determined to make the most of the club's last top flight game for, at least, a season.
Newcastle were relegated at Villa Park in 2009 and their supporters have never forgiven the manner in which the home supporters greeted their demise.
On that day, Villa supporters unveiled two banners which read "Sob on the Tyne" and "Who's You're Next Messiah, Ant or Dec?"
Prior to this game, both were alluded to by new banners on the Holte which read "No Sobbing on the Holte" and "You Have Ant, We'll Have Dec."
Home supporters also released dozens of beach balls prior to kick-off, while the carnival atmosphere was supplemented by a plane.
It flew above Villa Park in the opening stages trailing a banner which read "Randy Lerner is a Blue BCFC."
Events on the pitch came nowhere near to living up to the entertainment off it, with Newcastle having plenty of the ball but struggling to find a way past Villa's resolute defence.
Cisse saw appeals for a penalty waved away when his downward header cannoned off the arm of Alan Hutton.
The striker was guilty of squandering a decent opportunity when he failed to make a clean contact with Andros Townsend's defence-splitting pass.
A Ciaran Clark shot which flew well wide was the sum total of Villa's attacking efforts for the half.
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Jack Colback squandered a superb chance to put the visitors in front just seconds after the restart but fired over from eight yards out, after Villa had failed to deal with a Townsend cross.
Just as in the first half, it was the visitors who dominated possession but struggled to break down the hosts' resolute defence.
When chances did arrive, they were wasteful, substitute Mitrovic lobbing over after suddenly finding himself one-on-one with Bunn from Chiek Tiote's acrobatic pass.
The first serious shot on target did not arrive until the 70th minute with Georginio Wijnaldum bringing a save out of Bunn with a low drive from the edge of the box.
Mitrovic then went close with a header, before referee Robert Madley briefly halted the game in the 74th minute, to allow beach balls released by home supporters to be cleared from behind the Holte End goal.
The Magpies striker again headed off target as the visitors became increasingly desperate but the breakthrough never came.
And, on the final whistle, a new banner was released on the Holte which read "Sob on the Tyne Again."
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