My Newcastle United Player Ratings vs Stoke City (H)

Tim Krul (6.5) - After a slightly shaky start he looked comfortable and dealt well with one or two crosses and corners.

James Perch (6) - Unfortunately he conceded the goal that cost us the game but apart from that he actually had a good game.

Fabricio Coloccini (6) - He certainly looked good in possession as always but had one or two moments where Kenwyne Jones had the better of him.

Mike Williamson (6) - Another good display although it was difficult coping with Stoke's aerial assualt in the second half.

Jose Enrique (7) - One of our better players on the day. Always looking to get forward and almost set up a goal with a great run in the first half.

Wayne Routledge (6.5) - He struggled to get a hold of the game, although he did have a few good moments too, where his pace caused Stoke a few problems.

Cheick Tiote (7.5) - A thoroughly impressive display from the defensive midfielder. He showed he had the pace, skill and strength to be a quality player in this league and it was a surprise to see him substituted in the second half.

Joey Barton (7) - After a very good first half, he dropped a lot deeper in the second half as we struggled to maintain our first half dominance. Wasn't as effective then but still his form is looking very good thus far.

Hatem Ben Arfa (6.5) - He showed glimpses of his talent but was not in the game enough for my liking. He was substituted after the hour mark which to me was one of the mistakes Chris Houghton made today.

Kevin Nolan (6.5) - Took his penalty very well and he had a good game overall. He worked very hard and nearly scored an equaliser towards the end as well.

Andy Carroll (5.5) - It wasn't his best day at the office. He did manage to win the penalty and almost scored with a well struck half volley but other than that he struggled to dominate in the air and was well below par today. He'll learn from the game though but what it did prove is that his not ready for an England call up at the moment.

Substitutes
Jonas Gutierrez (7) - Looked lively when coming on and even got one or two decent crosses into the box as well.

Shola Ameobi (6) - Failed to make an impact today.

Newcastle United Man of the Match: Cheick Tiote