The King is dead; Long live the King.

Talk about gloom.

In my years as a Newcastle supporter, very few of them have been positive. After following the Magpies for a while, you quickly realize that there aren't going to be too many good days, and when they come along, you've got to relish them. Most of your days will be spent head in hands, looking at your empty pint glass, wondering what happened between minute 3, when everything seemed like you still had a chance at this match, and minute 93. It's rough going, generally. But these last couple days have gone far, far beyond the typical depression that sweeps over you like the thick, cumulonimbous that is commonplace in the weather pattern that is NUFC. This was "Hurricane Kev," as it were.

A couple weeks ago, we were in season 2 of King Kev's reign. We had 4 points from our first two games, we were in fifth spot in the league, the transfer window was still open, we had a bililonaire English owner who, while at times a bit frugal, really seemed to care about the club he was funding. We had made a couple REALLY exciting aquisitions in Jonas and Curly-ccini, and there was nowhere to go but UP. The national media was even finally giving Newcastle and King Kev some respect after putting in a really fine performance at Old Trafford. Clear skies.

Now fast-forward to Thursday of this week. We get pounded at Arsenal. Kev gets in a petulent screaming match with that little brat Nasri. Transfer deadline day comes and goes with two signings - neither of which make the hairs on your arm stand up - let alone being the "Wow" signing that Ashley promised. You see Manchester City get the huge monetary backing that we all thought we would get when Ashley took charge. King Kev threatens to leave, doesn't, stays holed up in some hotel in Manchester, nobody's talking on either end, so you have to settle for news reports that who knows if they're right, and finally, King Kev, the saviour and only shining light in the future on Newcastle United, resigns. This isn't just a bad day - this is a bad couple weeks, and if you really think about it, this means that nothing really GOOD can happen for the next 2-3 YEARS. SERIOUSLY. I'm not overreacting here. King Kev leaves. Dennis Wise, who the fans HATE, stays. Mike Ashley stays, who just sided with Wise over Kev. Derrick Lambias, the managing director, stays - even though he looks like a tool and nobody knows really WHAT he does - but there are rumours that HES the one who fired Kev in the first place. The REASON Kev quit is because Ashley put the ENTIRE team up for sale on the last day of the transfer window: so you tell me - what PLAYER is going to take to the field this season with an undying passion for quality and victory? What player wouldn't want to get shipped out of there ASAP? For that, what MANAGER would like to come into this laughing stock of a club, and this revolving door of a position? Think about it - whoever comes in knows that A)the fans - the most powerful fans in the UK - will be fervently against them. B)They don't have power to buy or sell players - the reason why KK left in the first place. C)They will probably only last a few months before Ashley gets bored and sacks their butt and D) They will get to join a long line of laughable men who have come and gone from this position without having won anything or succeeded in any way.

Sounds like a great ad for the position, huh?

I don't know what to predict exactly, but the atmosphere at the matches is sure to be ugly at best, and I'm guessing the players won't be playing with any inspiration, let alone with the agressive, passionate attacking style that KK was beginning to get the to play with. The wind will have been taken out of all of them, and I'm not really looking forward to the rest of the season. I mean, whatever manager we do get, it will not be an improvement on the King. I guess this was inevitable - but nobody imagined it would come just 8 months into his reign. There's no interest there for any of the Geordies, and now, instead of one massive love fest towards Newcastle that we had a couple weeks ago, it's nothing less than a violent civil war between owners and fans, and the worst part is that the players, God bless them, will be the ones stuck in the middle.

Now, being the forever optimist that I am, I will leave my readers with one little tiny light at the end of this black-hole of a tunnel. There are very dim rumblings that the middle-eastern billionaire who was interested in buying our club out a few weeks ago may revive his interest after seeing the backlash that the fans gave towards Mike Ashley. If this were to happen, there are rumours that he would bring back King Kev, supply him with a might war-chest to buy players, and, of course, give him the power and responsibility that should intrinsically come with the title of "Manager." But all this is VERY speculative. It is, however, currently, the only way that we could all go back to being truly happy again. :(