Newcastle United captain Jamaal Lascelles has revealed that Paul Dummett and Mark Gillespie spoke to the squad after drawing Sunderland in the FA Cup.
The two local players clearly felt the need for everyone to understand the importance of the occasion and what it means to the Newcastle supporters.
In an interview with NUFCTV, Lascelles explained how Dummett and Gillespie were the first two to talk to the team about drawing Sunderland how excited they were for the match.
The return of the derby is huge for Newcastle
It’s been almost eight years since the last Tyne-Wear derby and almost a whole generation of Newcastle fans have grown up not knowing what it’s like to experience one of those games.
The FA Cup has now brought these two teams back together at the start of next month and it’s safe to say that the local lads at Newcastle are very much looking forward to it.
Not only will Dummett and Gillespie be eagerly anticipating the short journey to Sunderland, Dan Burn, Sean Longstaff and Jacob Murphy will all be hoping to have a part to play in the fixture.
As Lascelles discussed, however, it was in fact Dummett and Gillespie who wanted to rally the Newcastle squad together for what will be such an important game for the club.
In his interview, Lascelles said: “You couldn’t write it really. The reaction from the boys, I think we’re all really looking forward to it.
“For me, the importance of understanding it’s a derby as well, when you have a lot of foreign players and younger players people might not understand how big it is, but it’s a huge game.
“I think Dummett and Mark [Gillespie] spoke up the other day about what it means to everybody involved at Newcastle United and we’re all really looking forward to it.”
Lascelles is excited to face Sunderland again
The captain is one of the few players remaining at the club who knows what it’s like to play in a derby game, so his experience could prove to be key in the upcoming tie.
Dummett, of course, will also have that experience having been at the club since 2000, but both he and Gillespie have a different outlook on it to Lascelles having been raised as Newcastle fans.
One thing that will give some confidence to supporters is just how much the team are relishing the chance to play in a derby. The most recent run of results against Sunderland had caused fans to dread this fixture every year.
It’s a whole new team and a whole new story now though and it’s set to be an entertaining watch that’s for sure.
Receive a digest of our best Newcastle content each week direct to your mailbox
