How does Dwight Gayle's start at Newcastle compare to other Magpies' heroes?

But how does the flying start made by the £10 million signing compare with the initial impact of previous Magpie strike heroes?

Andy Cole’s explosive emergence at St James’ Park in 1993? The Alan Shearer effect after his £15 million arrival in 1996? Are they and other Newcastle legends being blown away by Dwight’s Gayle-force start?

Here, we reveal where Gayle’s goals leave him in the list of the Magpies’ fastest-starting modern-day strikers.

Les Ferdinand: 15 goals in first 12 NUFC games - 1.25 goals per game.

"Sir Les" was ennobled almost from the start of his Newcastle career thanks to a white-hot start in front of goal.

Ferdinand scored in 10 of the Magpies' 12 opening games of the memorable 1995-96 season following his arrival from QPR.

Off the mark in an opening day victory over Coventry - one of 11 wins in those first 12 games - he scored twice against each of Bolton, Manchester City and Chelsea.

And a hat-trick against Wimbledon completed a record-breaking haul of 15 in a first dozen appearances for the spring-heeled No 9.

Andy Cole: 12 goals in first 12 NUFC games (inc 1 sub appearance) - 1 goals per game

Andy “Goal” scored 12 times in his first 11 appearances in a Newcastle shirt to help clinch promotion in 1992-93.

The then club record £1.75 million signing found the net minutes after being introduced as a substitute on debut against Notts County, and grabbed two hat-tricks before the close of the campaign.

It took Cole until Newcastle’s third game in the Premiership to find the net – although an equaliser at Old Trafford would mark the start of a record-breaking 41-goal season.

Dwight Gayle: 11 goals in first 12 NUFC games - 0.92 goals per game

Gayle’s super start to life on Tyneside has sent him top of the Championship scoring charts with 11 goals in 12 league games.

One poacher’s goal and a sublime finish at Barnsley last Tuesday sent Newcastle top of the table.

Throw in his memorable hat-trick against promotion rivals Norwich – including a heart-stopping last-gasp winner – and Gayle has already paid off a huge chunk of his supposedly lofty £10 million price tag.

Mick Quinn: 9 goals in first 12 NUFC games - 0.75 goals per game

Quinn’s immediate impact in a Newcastle shirt was devastating – four goals in a 5-2 home win over Leeds on day one of the 1989-90 Division Two season softening the blow of relegation.

Five goals in his next four games, including a double against Oldham at St James’ Park, maintained the former Portsmouth striker’s momentum.

But Quinn found the net just once in his next seven outings.

Kevin Keegan: 8 goals in first 12 NUFC games – 0.66 goals per game

Having scored memorably on debut at St James’ Park against QPR on the opening day of the 1982-83 season, Keegan also found the net in his next two outings.

And after a subsequent four-game goal drought, KK exploded back to life with four of Newcastle’s five goals in a rout of Rotherham in early October.

Having scored eight in his first dozen games, Keegan ended that season with 21 goals – one behind Imre Varadi.

Alan Shearer: 7 goals in first 12 NUFC games - 0.58 goals per game

Although he went on to break Newcastle’s all-time scoring record, Shearer’s early goal haul for his hometown club was solid rather than spectacular.

After firing home last on in a victory against Wimbledon on his home debut, Shearer managed six more goals in his next 10 games.

Initially, Les Ferdinand was the more prolific half of a fearsome strike partnership, scoring nine in his opening dozen outings that season.