Albion 2 Newcastle 3 - verdict

A defensive horror show cost Albion dear as they were beaten by Newcastle in the Premier League basement battle at the Hawthorns.

Tony Mowbray's men were made to pay for a woeful first-half display, as the visitors struck three times before the break.

The Baggies defended abysmally in the opening 45 minutes as the Magpies – without hospitalised manager Joe Kinnear – raced into a 3-1 lead at the interval.

Two fine goals for Albion from Frenchman Marc Antoine-Fortune were not enough to bail out the sub-standard Baggies defenders.

There was a whirlwind start to the game but shocking defending at both ends resulting in three goals in the opening nine minutes.

Newcastle took the lead with around 90 seconds played, as Leon Barnett's howler allowed Damien Duff to fire the Magpies in front with a straightforward finish.

Albion were level within two minutes, as a clever pass from Borja Valero found Fortune who produced a brilliant turn past Steven Taylor followed by a cool finish.

But the scores were level for just five minutes, before some more slapstick defending in the Albion box resulted in the visitors regaining the lead.

Ryan Taylor met a left wing cross with a volley that hit the unfortunate Barnett, with Peter Lovenkrands on hand to finish for the away side.

Albion struggled throughout defensively and it was no surprise when Newcastle extended their lead just before the break. Abdoulaye Meite capped a dismal afternoon by losing Steven Taylor at a corner, giving the Newcastle defender a simple header past Scott Carson.

The Baggies pressurised for much of the second half as the Magpies defended their advantage.

Fortune gave the home side some hope with 16 minutes to go with another excellent finish from Filipe Teixeira's pass. But it was not enough for Albion, who missed a chance to climb off the bottom of the table and close the gap on Newcastle.

The result will provide some welcome cheer for Toon manager Kinnear, who missed the game after being taken ill this morning at the Newcastle United team hotel.