Newcastle United 1-0 Norwich City

Demba Ba's first-half goal for Newcastle proved crucial in what was a lacklustre game lacking in any real quality or clear cut chances.

Norwich had won just one of their last nine league fixtures prior to today's encounter, and for large parts of the match they showed exactly why they have struggling for points at the moment under Chris Hughton.
To say City could probably have carried on playing for another 90 minutes without finding the back of the net would perhaps be a touch harsh, but they were largely toothless in attack against a Magpies side that never had to leave first gear.
Alan Pardew, after just 18 minutes, opted to push James Perch into the centre of midfield alongside Yohan Cabaye, with Vurnon Anita switched to right-back, and that additional presence in midfield soon worked wonders as the Magpies grafted a wonderful opening goal.
A lovely ball from Hatem Ben Arfa was threaded through to the feet of Ba, who made no mistake in slotting the ball past the helpless John Ruddy in the Norwich goal.
Robert Snodgrass was unlucky to see a header cleared off the line by Mike Williamson, but it was Newcastle who looked the likelier to add to their tally before half-time, a shot from Cabaye rising over the bar at the last moment, and Papiss Cisse from the penalty spot just seconds before half-time as he fired over.
Steven Taylor and Cabaye wasted chances for the Magpies shortly after the restart, while the Canaries continued to look toothless in front of goal. The introduction of Grant Holt should have provided City with greater attacking impetus, but the striker cut a shadow of his former self from last season, earning little more than a couple of dressing downs from the referee for moaning.
The game ended with a flurry of bookings after a glut of rash challenges, and that was about as interesting as the second half got.
The United boss looked pleased with the result at full-time, but Pardew will need to see far more quality from his team if they want to make an impression in the Premier League and in Europe this season.