Toon ready to end on a high

Alan Pardew has promised an all-out assault on Champions League qualification in a bid for a "special" end to an outstanding season.

The Magpies climbed to within three points of third-placed Arsenal with a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Stoke which left them four points clear of Chelsea in sixth. They head for relegation-threatened Wigan next weekend knowing victory there would ensure a potentially thrilling conclusion to the campaign with Manchester City due on Tyneside either side of trips to Chelsea and Everton. The win - their sixth in succession - will be enough to secure European football for next season if the Toffees do not match the feat at leaders Manchester United on Sunday. Pardew said: "That is a big, big achievement by us, make no mistake. I am pretty sure Liverpool can't catch us and to finish above them, regardless of their cup exploits, is still outstanding. "Whatever we do now, it's an outstanding season. But of course, we haven't lost sight of what the city hasn't lost sight of. You can feel it in the crowd, you can feel it in the city, that there's a chance for us to do something really special, and we will go to Wigan and try to achieve that."