Reading 0 Newcastle 0: Magpies denied their fourteenth away victory in the league as Jaap Stam’s Royals scrap for a point
KING Kev’s record will have to wait another day.
But Rafa Benitez’s road warriors look ready to be crowned Championship champs now.
Newcastle were going in search of a record FOURTEENTH away victory in the league.
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It would have surpassed the 13 they managed under Kevin Keegan in the triumphant second-tier season in 1992-93.
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The Magpies already boast the most away wins in Europe with their baker’s dozen.
And that would have been boosted again were it not for the heroics of Ali Al Habsi.
The stalemate saw the Toon’s lead cut to three points after Brighton’s win at Rotherham.
But given the nightmare fixture list of the Seagulls, Huddersfield and Reading staring them in the face on Tuesday last week, to be still top of the pile come the end of it is a massive victory for Benitez’s troops.
Indeed it feels now, with an eight-point gap to David Wagner’s Terriers, it seems a matter of when, not if, they will seal automatic promotion - and most probably as champions.
As for Reading, it was a decent point given their defeats to promotion rivals of late and edged them another point to a play-off finish.
Which, when you consider boss Jaap Stam was aiming for a place in the top ten at the start of the season, underlines the miracles the Dutchman has worked at the Mad Stad this year.
Stam hailed the Toon in his programme notes but observed how Benitez’s side have “had that little bit of luck on their side recently, luck that teams at the top of the table so often earn”.
It was fair comment given the freak nature of Mo Diame’s crucial equaliser at Brighton.
And fortune continued to be on Newcastle’s side when within minutes they would have been a goal down had Lewis Grabban not somehow planted a point-blank header wide from Garath McCleary’s cross.
But that early sitter aside, it was the visiting team which dominated proceedings in the first half.
It must have come as quite a shock to the Madejski faithful given the possession-obsessed outfit they have grown accustomed to watching under their pass-master boss.
Yoan Gouffran had Ali Al-Habsi scrambling to reach a powerful header from 15 yards.
And the Oman veteran had to be at his best to deny Jonjo Shelvey after the Toon playmaker had exchanged flicks with Daryl Murphy and volleyed goalwards from the edge of the area.
Ex-Bolton stopper Al-Habsi has been in fine form all season and found himself at the centre of attention once again, turning wide Gouffran’s long-ranger before performing some superman acrobatics to palm away Ritchie’s dangerous cross-shot at the far post.
Ritchie hit 15 goals for Bournemouth in the season he inspired them to the Premier League two years ago.
The Scotland international was just two off that tally for the current campaign going into this clash and came within a whisker of a 14th for the term just before the break.
After dancing round a defender just outside the area, he hit a low drive which hit the post, bounced back off into the six-yard area and required some last-ditch heroics from skipper Paul McShane to prevent Gouffran tapping in the rebound.
Reading began the second half as they had the first - by seeing a good chance go begging.
This time it was hardly their fault, as the wicked deflection off Jamaal Lascelles from McCleary’s 20-yard strike could have gone anywhere after bamboozling Karl Darlow, but unfortunately for the hosts it dropped wide.
The 3,704 away fans then pumped up the volume with continuous chants of encouragement to their heroes and at times it felt more like a Newcastle home game than the other way around.
That was until the Reading supporters reminded their guests that they ‘got the record 106’ in reference to the greatest-ever Championship points tally achieved by Steve Coppell’s Royals side in 1996.
Benitez’s side could still technically pip that total if they win their remaining ten league games.
And given the lift this away-day run has given them, you would not put it past them.
The visitors thought they had the winner on 69 minutes when Murphy rose highest to head sub Christian Atsu’s corner towards the far corner - only to see Al Habsi come to the rescue once more.
Benitez threw on the big guns in Dwight Gayle and Diame late on but Reading held firm, and even threatened to nick it themselves when McCleary brushed the bar at the death.
It may have only been a point for the hosts. But given Benitez has turned his side into Euro kings on the road, it was one very well earnt indeed.