Toon Army up the ante but Alan Pardew won't quite as Newcastle manager
The Mapgies ended a run of six defeats with victory over Cardiff
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Your support makes all the difference.Alan Pardew has vowed to battle on as Newcastle manager despite being subjected to a torrent of abuse as his side ended a six-game losing run.
The Magpies' 3-0 win over Cardiff at St James' Park on Saturday sent the Bluebirds back down to the Championship. However, the game was played out amid a tense atmosphere as home fans, several thousand of whom walked out at two pre-arranged points in the second half, aimed chants at their manager and the club's owner Mike Ashley.
Pardew, who was booed by a section of the crowd whenever he stepped out of the dug-out, said: "I am frustrated a little bit, of course. Some of the criticism has been a little bit left-field and a little bit over the top, and that's fuelled the anger here.
"You have to accept that, unfortunately, when you lose six as a Newcastle manager – they are upset, they are angry – I understand that. I apologise to them for the last six games and hopefully, we have taken a very, very small step towards them.
"Coming to the sideline, I was only antagonising them and I don't want to do that and make the atmosphere worse for the players, so it seemed a lot more sense to let [assistant manager] John [Carver] do that and take a seat."
Newcastle supporters repeatedly sang Hatem Ben Arfa's name, with the midfielder among the crowd after once again being left out, and Pardew was forced to dismiss social media rumours that the pair had come to blows. "I have seen that. It's an absolute load of rubbish. He came and shook my hand at the end and that was it," he said.
PA
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