Hat-trick dedicated to Kevin Nolan’s daughter

Sep 28 2009 by Luke Edwards, The Journal

“But since I have got to Newcastle they have looked after me and that’s been a big plus, the physio department have been tremendous.

“I had an ankle operation just before I signed for the club and that had an effect on my form when I came. The big plus for me is the last six months has been the first time I have trained every day for a long time. It was the first proper pre-season I’ve had behind me for years.

“It has been really good. I have really enjoyed training every day and that is why I am starting to produce on the pitch. The most important thing is to keep winning games and get this great football club back to where it belongs.”

Bolton were interested in resigning Nolan when Newcastle were relegated, but it was never a move that interested the player as he felt he had a responsibility to get Newcastle back into the top flight.

He added: “I’ve got to be honest, since I arrived, I have enjoyed every minute. Don’t get me wrong, the last day of the season was the worst time of my life. But the next day, I went for a pint with my dad and it was like ‘I can’t wait to get back’.

“We got together as a squad of lads, and as a staff and came together as one. We said where we want to be, what we want to do, and we’ve managed to do that so far.

“It is only a start. We are only nine games in. There is a long, long, way to go, but it is the start we wanted and hopefully we can continue it because the games come thick and fast in this division.

“It was important we got off to a good start. All the teams which have gone down have done well. We had a blip against Blackpool but we bounced back. We have two games at home next and we have to get maximum points.”