Dempsey holds the match ball tightly following his treble against Newcastle

No country for old men? Once more unto the breach dear friends….

First off, what a game! From dreadful in the first half, to devastating in the second. That boy Clint Dempsey carried on his hot streak as we blew Newcastle away in the second half. Credit must go to Jol for switching to 4-4-2 before the break and bringing on Bairdinho for the start of the second to give us better balance. For all Ruiz’s skill on the ball he is definitely not a central midfielder in a 4-4-2. Baird’s introduction gave Duff, Dempsey, Johnson and Zamora the ball and the space to wreak havoc. Four goals in sixteen minutes can’t be wrong!

There was a very retro feel to the second half. Zamora and Johnson combining up top, with Duff cutting in and Dempsey busting a gut to get forward for his goals. This was like watching the team from a few years ago with Hodgson at the helm. The defence may have changed but for one great half the “dads army” of Fulham’s great Europa League run got up and delivered once last hurrah.

Make no mistake though, if this wasn’t the last time we’ll see these guys performing together then it’s close to it. Duff, Zamora, Johnson, Murphy are all the wrong side of thirty, some by quite a distance. The introduction of Ruiz, Dembele and Frei into our squad has changed the way we play forever and Fulham fans can expect future signings to fit Jol’s style of play and preferred formation of 4-2-3-1.

It is best to think of the Newcastle game as a glorious rallying against the light, a spit in the face of father time as he closes in, but don’t expect this to be our future or even the present of our great club for much longer.