'Really disappointed': Eddie Howe says Newcastle United 'paid the price' for poor first half performance
Once again, Newcastle United let a positive start fade into a dismal performance as the Magpies were beaten by Brighton and Hove Albion.
Newcastle came out of the blocks really well, attacking with gusto, but for all of that energy and early domination, there were no real attempts at goal to speak of.
As has been the case far too often lately, once the game settled after the initial quarter of an hour, Newcastle faded, and our opponents became the dominant force.
That switch in dynamics led to Brighton grabbing a goal just before halftime, giving Eddie Howe plenty to think about at the break.
Eddie Howe says Newcastle paid the price for those poor 30 minutes
Howe made changes during the interval, and Newcastle were much better in the second half as a result. While they did manage to pull a goal back thanks to a sublime Nick Woltemade goal, Brighton were able to nick it late on with only their third chance of the half.
Speaking after the game to NUFC TV, Howe said Newcastle simply weren't good enough for around half an hour of the first period.
"Tough result for us. I don't think we played well for probably half an hour of that first half. We started brightly and then, yeah, I was really disappointed with the half an hour to half time.
"We were much better in the second half, but we've paid the price, really, for that first period in the first period."
Eddie Howe says tiredness from internationals played a part, but can't be used as an excuse
Eddie Howe admitted that the international break and the travel involved would have played a part in some of the players' performances, but made the point that the same would be true of many of Brighton's players.
It's a tough one to swallow, especially as we did look the much better side in the second half, and the fact that once again we come away from Brighton without a win.
On to Champions League football now with the game against Benfica at St James' Park on Tuesday night.
