'Another level' - PIF presence spotted as Newcastle United coach gives Ross Wilson & Matthias Jaissle insight
Newcastle United U21s 3-2 Sunderland U21s: Robbie Stockdale’s side picked up a mini derby win in front of Matthias Jaissle and Ross Wilson at St James’ Park.
Newcastle United Under-21s came from behind to beat Sunderland Under-21s 3-2 at St James’ Park on Monday night.
Newcastle sporting director Ross Wilson, head coach Matthias Jaissle and club director Jacobo Solis of PIF were three of the 5,100 in attendance as Kyran Thompson, Park Seung-soo and Vakhtang Salia scored in the second half to cancel out goals from Sunderland pair Trey Ogunsuyi and Felix Scott either side of the break.
The win was Newcastle’s first in the Premier League 2 this season but a third straight victory for Robbie Stockdale’s side in all competitions after beating Luton Town in the Premier League Cup and Hartlepool United in the National League Cup.
We have launched a new NUFC YouTube channel to bring you the latest Newcastle United news and analysis. Click this link and subscribe to NUFC Press Box.
A ‘proper game’ for NUFC youngsters
And Stockdale was pleased to see his players rise to the occasion in a ‘proper game’ environment.
“It was a really good night, really enjoyable,” he said. “Felt like a proper game. Really pleased for the players.
“It means a lot to the players and the staff, obviously. To do it in the way that they did it, coming behind, having real determination, real quality, in front of 5,000 people at St James', it's a brilliant night for us.
“It's as close as we can get, because we're under-21 as a programme, as you know, the games can feel a little bit youth-teamy, dare I say it, and there's nothing against that, but we're trying to prepare them for senior football, so me being as miserable as I am, I just mentioned to the boys at the end there, we've got Peterborough on Friday night at Whitley Park.
“The professional side of football is you have to do that again, when there's maybe not 5,000 people cheering you, and people will still be watching you. So yeah, it's difficult, but a night like tonight, playing well in front of a really good crowd, a really noisy crowd at St James', I think it felt first-team to me, and that can only stand them in good stead.”
The Gazette has launched a WhatsApp NUFC channel to bring the latest news, analysis and team & injury updates directly to your phone. Simply click this link to join our NUFC WhatsApp channel.
‘Fantastic’ first-team relationship
Newcastle recently had five academy players on the bench in last month’s Premier League win over Hull City while youngsters are regularly called up to train with Jaissle’s first-team squad.
And with Jaissle and Wilson watching on and PIF presence in the stands, Stockdale has admitted the relationship between the Under-21s and the first-team is the best it's been since he first arrived at the academy in early 2025.
“The players experienced something that felt like the first team, and that's what we want to try and replicate for them, because if we send players out on loan, they'll be all the better for having those experiences,” Stockdale continued. “The relationship with the first team and us was fantastic, but now it's gone up another level, truth be told.
“The fact that the first team staff are here, they know all our players, we have discussions every day about them. I think they'll be really satisfied with what we're doing with them.”