It started during lockdown and now I find I’m a member of the 500 club | OneFootball

Well what started out as something to keep up the spirits during lockdown four years ago, has now turned into an enjoyable Newcastle United related hobby.

This will be my 500th article under the pseudonym ‘Bazoox’ on The Mag.

So much has passed in such a short period of time and Newcastle United have went from being in the depths of despair under the most spiteful of owners, to a football club brimming with hope for the future.

My love affair with Newcastle United began in the early 1970s and I have often paid tribute to the likes of Frankie Clark, Tony Green and Tommy Cassidy etc, in specialised articles.

When you google these iconic players from yesteryear, I’m quite proud that my articles are often in there with a particular player’s Wiki profile or related profiles.

I have lost some good mates and memorable people over the last four years too. The likes of Ginger Burns, John Asiamah, Paulie King, and more recently, Chad Hedley, are sadly no longer with us.

I’ve done my fair share of mackem baiting aided and abetted by the likes of ‘Mavis Riley’, Spena, Ron, Tony and Brian.

I always tried to find out as much about players from the turn of the 20th century and onwards, before writing pieces on legends likes Colin Veitch and Hughie Gallacher. This has given me hours of pleasure as I sift through our long history.

My favourite Newcastle United icon is the living legend Kevin Keegan. What he has done in the past for this club will never be forgotten.

I’m going to name some of my own personal favourite players down the years.

Malcolm Macdonald, David Craig, Terry Hibbitt, Tommy Cassidy, Irving Nattrass, Peter Withe, Imre Varadi, Paul Goddard, Micky Quinn, Liam O’Brien, David Kelly, Philippe Albert, Sir Les Ferdinand, Faustino Asprilla, Nobby Solano, Hatem Ben Arfa and Papiss Cisse all deserve special mentions and I salute them all.

I like doing the everyday life pieces about when I’m out and about in the pubs and clubs with Auld Ellas and my dog Little Edd. Many a time I have got into conversation with people and they happen to mention they regularly visit The Mag, then on occasion it turns out they have been reading my latest article on The Mag and comment that ‘Bazoox’ is crackers!

When I tell them it’s me, the look on their faces… it may be one of you who we bump into next.

A nice bonus as well, the fact that I have had really nice feedback from the likes of Micky Quinn and Gavin Peacock, on articles I have written for The Mag.

I championed the takeover from the beginning. I remember feeling excited in the spring of 2020, but what followed was 18 months of sheer frustration. The Septic Six, the EPL and the FA tried everything to prevent Newcastle United being majority owned by the Saudi Arabian PIF.

I’d like to thank Amanda Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi once again for their sheer determination and perseverance.

I firmly believe that we are now going to be a successful club, sooner rather than later.

So here’s hopefully to another 500 articles in the next four years. I would also encourage any of you to send in an article to The Mag.