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| Kevin Nolan, Joey Barton and Shola Ameobi were instrumental in Newcastle's win |
Newcastle just don't do scrappy home wins.
When they're good, they're excellent, and when they're bad, they're woeful. They're nothing if not entertaining.
Their five home wins have been as follows: 6-0, 5-1, 3-1, 5-0, 4-1. Five home wins, despite the style of them, don't sound much, but it has been their away form which has truly held the season together.
They were in dire need of a win today against Wolves though, and the players came good when needed.
Shola Ameobi had his best game in months, while Joey Barton was instrumental as always, with Newcastle putting to bed fears Andy Carroll's departure and Leon Best's injury would see the goals dry up.
In front of a crowd just 61 short of 50,000, United never looked in any real trouble early on and took the lead on 22 minutes.
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| Nolan celebrated with his iconic chicken dance |
Nolan was perhaps lucky to escape a red card late in the first-half after bringing down pacy Adam Hammill, who seemed to be set for a run on goal.
The Newcastle skipper was booked for the foul, which will rule him out of the Aston Villa and Manchester United fixtures, but he will feel that was worth it as Hammill looked odds-on to worry Steve Harper.
Harper then made a great save from Sylvan Ebanks-Blake, but the ex-Manchester United man will feel he should have scored.
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| Ameobi's goal was his first since January |
Ameobi's all-round performance was crucial in this game as he won his duel with Wolves defender Christophe Berra and put to bed fears he was struggling to play in his mask.
Newcastle started the second half like a house on fire, with Lovenkrands rounding the keeper only to see his shot from a tight angle hit the post.
The visitors were tactically similar to how they were in the reverse fixture earlier in the season, but an early booking handed out by Mike Dean for a foul on Joey Barton showed the referee would not stand for the same rough-house tactics used on Barton in that game.
Wolves still tried to kick him out of the game, but again they failed.
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| Lovenkrands' goal seemed to secure victory at the start of the second-half |
Barton's performances out wide have been a revelation this season and he is truly feeling the love of the Newcastle fans now.
He will never be loved by a set of fans like he is by the Toon Army, and that is why it should be a no-brainer for him to sign a new contract in the summer providing Newcastle stay up.
He was the best player on the park in this game and was at the heart of everything Newcastle did well. He is surely their player of the season.
Wolves did threaten a comeback, with the impressive Ebanks-Blake turning home a cross from the dangerous Matt Jarvis, which led to a spell of football which can only be described as end-to-end.
It was like a basketball match at times, with both teams looking threatening in every attack, and it took a goal-line clearance from substitute James Perch to preserve Newcastle's two-goal advantage.
Sylvan Ebanks-Blake was unmarked in the box from a corner and powered a header goalwards, but Perch was alert to save the day.
Steven Fletcher had earlier hit the post when it looked like he would score.
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| Gutierrez's goal capped a great display by the Argentinean |
He celebrated in typical exuberant fashion - although without the Spiderman mask - as Newcastle celebrated moving seven points clear of the bottom three.
Seeing him finish like that makes you wonder why he doesn't shoot more often, as he clearly has the ability to cooly fire the ball past the goalkeeper.
He can be incredibly frustrating at times, but if he can score goals like that on a more regular basis, Newcastle could have a real player on their hands.
His all-round display, similarly to Ameobi's, was his best for a long time as some of the Magpies' players seemed to have benefited immensely from the international break.
Shane Ferguson was also impressive on his first Premier League start. He made a number of fouls early on as he looked to make an immediate impact, but he settled down and got better as the game went on.
He seems to have a feistiness about him which should make up for his lack of physical stature, and he looks very assured on the ball.
He was withdrawn with a knock on 59 minutes and earned a standing ovation from the crowd, who have clearly spotted his potential to be a Newcastle player for years to come.
Cheik Tiote's loss was hardly felt by the home side as Danny Guthrie fitted into the midfield with ease.
Guthrie was not heavily involved in the game but did what he had to do well, which will have impressed boss Alan Pardew who recently called for fringe players to stand up and be counted.
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| Coloccini has been a key player since joining in 2008 |
Coloccini has become a cult figure with Toon fans, in a similar way to that of David Luiz at Chelsea, after a difficult first season on Tyneside.
He has become an integral part of the side and the mistakes which blighted his first season seem to have been all but eradicated from his game.
Williamson, while not earning many headlines, goes about his business in a calm and composed fashion. He is a real no-nonsense defender: if the ball needs to be kicked out of play, he will kick it out.
He may well be one of Newcastle's best signings of recent years as he appeared to join as a squad player last January but has quickly developed into a key member of the team.
Peter Lovenkrands worked his socks off up-front, and while he may lack the sheer pace he had a few years ago, he more than makes up for that with his work-rate.
He has not been a prolific goalscorer this season but his team-mates appreciate his work, which is one of the reasons Alan Pardew has stuck with him despite Nile Ranger and Shefki Kuqi waiting in the wings.
As for Wolves, it was a catalogue of errors and an afternoon they will want to forget.
Kevin Nolan's run for the first was not watched, leaving keeper Hennessey with little chance of stopping the Newcastle skipper open the scoring.
Ameobi got ahead of his marker too easily for the second while Lovenkrands was unmarked for the third, as the defensive partnership of Christophe Berra and Richard Stearman seemed to fall apart.
Their tactics also left a lot to be desired. Again they tried to kick Newcastle out of the game and again they failed.
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| Danny Guthrie coped well with Jamie O'Hara's threat during the game |
Both are left-footed players who like to get forward, spray passes and shoot from distance, and Milijas' withdrawal half an hour in was an admission from Mick McCarthy he had got his tactics wrong.
His defenders also let him down and left the talents of Jamie O'Hara, Adam Hammill, Matt Jarvis and Sylvan Ebanks-Blake high and dry up front. All four were impressive and on another day could have created more goals, but the defensive performance of the team put pay to that.
Wolves should have enough about them to steer away from danger but a defeat and display like this will only serve to worry fans even more. They are still stuck in the relegation zone and need results fast to restore the faith.
As for Newcastle, they should now be safe on 39 points barring a remarkable turnaround in fortunes.
This was their first win at 3 o'clock on a Saturday in the Premier League at St James' Park since August 2008.
They answered their critics in great style in this game, moving ahead of rivals Sunderland in the process, to put clear ground between themselves and the bottom three.
They don't look like a relegation outfit and can surely now look forward to a second-successive top-flight campaign.
My player ratings:
Newcastle: Harper 7, Simpson 6, Coloccini 8, Williamson 7, Ferguson 7 (Perch 6), BARTON 8 (S. Taylor n/a), Guthrie 7, Nolan 7, Gutierrez 8, Ameobi 8, Lovenkrands 7 (Ranger 6).
Wolves: Hennessey 6, Foley 6, Stearman 6, Berra 5, Elokobi 5 (Ward n/a), Henry 6, Milijas 5 (Fletcher 6), O'Hara 7, Jarvis 7, Hammill 6 (Kightly 6), Ebanks-Blake 7.
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