Harper hails Kinnear's impact

Harper: Happy with Kinnear

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Newcastle goalkeeper Steve Harper has praised the positive impact made by Joe Kinnear at St James' Park.

Kinnear's appointment as interim manager was widely ridiculed as the club brought the former Wimbledon chief in to steady the ship following the departure of Kevin Keegan.

Newcastle showed some fighting spirit in Kinnear's first game in charge against Everton last weekend as they came from two goals down to earn a 2-2 draw and end a run of five consecutive defeats.

"Joe is a character," Harper told the Newcastle Evening Chronicle. "He's great out there on the training field.

"Chris Hughton was doing a great job but Joe has come in and done a good job. He has put the edge back into training with the way he operates.

"The training has been good and we have worked a lot on set-pieces."

Harper also revealed Kinnear's tactical nous helped them get their 2-2 draw at Goodison Park.

Fantastic

"It was fantastic to get a result at Everton," added Harper. "At 2-0 down you are fearing the worst.

"The manager showed good tactical know-how and made a couple of changes. We can now enjoy training for the next two weeks. If we'd had a hiding, the doom and gloom would have continued.

"It was a great result - hopefully it is the start of an upturn in our fortunes and we look forward to Man City."