Super sub Tim plays it Krul
SUPER sub Tim Krul has shrugged off the praise after coming off the bench to help Newcastle United to a perfect 10 clean sheets.
And he has wished goalkeeping rival Steve Harper a speedy recovery from injury – even though it would mean an equally quick return to the bench.
Krul came on for the second half against Swansea City on Saturday after Harper suffered a back problem.
And the youngster started where Harper – who had himself made two superb saves before the break – had left off, pulling off two stunning stops to help Newcastle United win 3-0 and keep a 10th clean sheet of the campaign.
While the 21-year-old would love to start against Watford, his first thoughts after the game were for Harper, who Chris Hughton is hopeful will be available for Saturday.
"It was unexpected, of course," Krul told the Gazette.
"You never expect Harps to get an injury, but you're waiting for your minutes, so you have to be ready.
"I had another second half, and I was pleased to be playing again, and especially to win 3-0 against Swansea. It was a great result.
"We didn't expect that before the game – we were expecting a difficult team.
"Chris Hughton told us from the start not to let them play and be on them, and I thought we did that from the first minute."
Krul admitted he had an inkling that he would be called into action after goalkeeping coach Paul Barron and himself noticed Harper was struggling with injury early on.
"Paul and me looked each other in the eye straight-away," he added.
"When he kicked it, he was already stretching and feeling it. The longer it went on, he was struggling more.
"Paul said I was definitely on for the second half, and I'm pleased to be playing again, but the most important thing is that I hope he is OK with his back. It looked really bad.
"I was glad to keep the clean sheet, and five wins on the bounce is great."
Krul is yet to concede a league goal this season, having also come on for the second half on the opening day of the season against West Bromwich Albion, and he credits his sharpness to Barron.
And Barron will have been delighted with the save he made early in the second half to deny Nathan Dyer, and the late stop amid a goalmouth scramble.
Krul went on: "It was a through ball behind Danny Simpson, and I just had to stand up to Dyer.
"I was lucky he kicked it against my legs.
"For the last one, I was just trying to be big – it was just a reaction save.
"Paul Barron's really important. He's keeping me sharp every morning, and after the warm up, he said, 'Tim, if you keep going like that, you've got a big chance – keep sharp'."
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for South Shields
Tuesday 07 February 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: -3 C to 6 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: South west
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: -2 C to 1 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: South
