Newcastle salute captain marvel

Graeme Souness hailed former England striker Alan Shearer as "fantastic" after the veteran scored his 200th goal for Newcastle United FC, equalling the club record held by Jackie Milburn.

Crowd salute
Shearer scored with ten minutes remaining of Newcastle's FA Cup third round tie against Mansfield Town, rifling in from close range after a clever back-heel by Albert Luque. As he wheeled away in familiar one-arm-raised celebration, the relieved St. James' Park crowd rose to its feet to salute the legendary striker, now in his tenth season at his home-town club.

'Incredible achievement'
That respect was echoed by Newcastle manager Souness, who said: "It's a truly incredible achievement. Getting the goals in the modern game is harder than when Milburn set the record. It's a fantastic effort." The day did not look like it would come midway through last season, with Shearer remaining steadfast in his intent to retire at the end of the campaign.

No regrets
He was persuaded to stay on, however, and Souness believes that in time the 35-year-old club captain will reflect on the decision with little regret. "Although individual awards are not very important to him, in five or ten years time he might look back and say, 'I'm glad I did stay'," Souness continued. Shearer might already concur with that assessment having added more gloss to a career that began 18 years ago at Southampton FC.

Halcyon days
He scored 23 goals in 118 games at The Dell before moving to Blackburn Rovers FC for €5.25m in the summer of 1992. Shearer repaid that sum and then some in a halcyon period at Ewood Park, scoring at a rate of almost a goal a game, including a remarkable tally of 34 in the 1994/95 season as Blackburn claimed the Premiership title. Two years later he was handed a dream move to his home town of Newcastle for a then world record fee of €22m.

Fresh impetus
Shearer, whose international career saw him score 30 goals in 63 appearances for England before retiring after UEFA EURO 2000™, has not yet lifted silverware at St. James' Park but has continued to regularly find the net, leading to his historic strike against Mansfield. "At the start of the season he wasn't feeling himself," said Souness. "But he enjoys playing with Michael Owen and that has seemed to give him a new lease of life."

'The best'
How long Shearer continues appears up to the player, but regardless of whether or not he goes on to claim the record in his own right, former team-mate Robert Lee believes his legend has already been made. "He's the best," the former Newcastle midfielder said. "He's been the best since the Premiership started.

'Second-to-none'
"His goal record is second-to-none, he's aggressive, and if you get crosses in for him, nine times out of ten he will get on the end of them." Should he do so once more the record will be Shearer's alone.