Lewis McNall’s dramatic late winner booked Newcastle United a spot in the quarter-finals of the FA Youth Cup after a remarkable, topsy-turvy tie against bitter rivals Sunderland ended 4-3.
The hosts started the brighter of the two sides, with No.10 Josh Maja in particular catching the eye and linking up well with Joel Asoro and Lee Connelly.
But the Magpies began to threaten after ten minutes when, following a sparkling run down the right, Adam Wilson’s 20-yard effort was turned around the post by Sunderland stopper Michael Woud.
And just five minutes later, Newcastle were awarded a penalty after a foul by Oscar Krusnell on Wilson, and McNall made no mistake from the spot to make it 1-0.
The visitors then doubled their advantage in the 20th minute when skipper Owen Bailey met Matthew Longstaff’s free-kick, and that was how it stayed until the interval – although both Chris Allan and Asoro saw attempts go narrowly wide as Sunderland searched for a way back.
The Black Cats were given a lifeline on 54 minutes after they once again began the half the better, with Maja finally lashing the ball through the legs of Nathan Harker after some great build-up play.
Connelly curled wide as Sunderland pressed for an equaliser, but the lively Wilson struck a hammer blow just after the hour mark, cutting inside from the right before drilling home a wonderful strike from 25 yards to make it 3-1.
But the hosts did not quit and two quick-fire goals saw them draw level against the odds. Maja dusted himself off to score a penalty after going down under the challenge of Bailey, before Elliot Embleton coolly finished inside the penalty area.
This breathless tie was then end-to-end until the finish, with Kieran Aplin and Wilson both striking the woodwork with Woud beaten, while Asoro's thumping header was superbly parried away by Harker for the hosts.
And there was to be a late winner as McNall spun his man and raced through to break Sunderland hearts in the 87th minute, as Newcastle dumped the Black Cats out of the competition for the third time in four years.
