Minds were drifting and limbs were aching when the tireless Joelinton somehow found the energy to throw himself into a tackle with Declan Rice and win his side a throw-in in the final seconds of stoppage time.

Joelinton let out a roar before throwing his chewing gum on the turf. Even the usually calm Eddie Howe could not help but shout 'get in there!' on the touchline - just as so many Geordies did at St James' Park. It was as if the Brazil international had scored the winner in the 1-0 victory against Arsenal. What is it about this place?

"It's a unique mix between the crowd and the team," Howe told reporters. "You're never going to win anything solely with either - there has to be a mix of both.

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"At the moment we have that, but we don't take it for granted. We are really grateful for the support we get and we have to keep performing."

With the crowd behind them, though, Newcastle will take some stopping at St James' on this evidence. Kai Havertz needs no reminding of that; the Arsenal star has felt the wrath of Newcastle fans on both of his last two visits and you suspect the Germany international could feel their breath on his neck after taking Sean Longstaff down right in front of the Milburn Stand. It was a foolish tackle in so many ways and fired up both Newcastle players and supporters alike on the way to a gritty win.

No side now has a better home record in the Premier League this season than the black-and-whites. Contrast that to Newcastle's form on the road where Howe's team have won just once in the top-flight this season - even if that was a record-equalling 8-0 victory at Sheffield United.

At home, however, Newcastle have triumphed in four consecutive Premier League games without conceding a single goal for the first time in more than 11 years. Newcastle have only dropped points in one top-flight fixture at St James' this season and, even then, the Magpies were leading against Liverpool in the 80th minute before somehow losing 2-1.

The stadium, in short, has become a bear pit again on its day with Liverpool, Man City and Arsenal the only sides to win in the Premier League since Howe took charge and the fans have played their part. Jamaal Lascelles has spoken about how the roar of the crowd after a tackle 'makes you want to run through a brick wall for them'. Callum Wilson said the supporters 'get behind us to the extent that they truly act as the 12th man'. Dan Burn felt that results have proved that teams are 'intimidated by the atmosphere' when 'some people might have sneered' at that prospect once upon a time.

The players have long talked amongst themselves about making St James' a fortress, sensing that teams now fear coming to the stadium, and Matt Ritchie is well aware of the role the fans and Wor Flags have played in that transformation as one of the club's longest-serving current players. "I think they know how important they are, but their influence on this team in recent times has been phenomenal," the veteran wrote in his programme notes before the Arsenal game. "They really do have the power to create a really unique and positive energy within this stadium."

That was a quality Howe wanted to tap into when the Newcastle boss was appointed nearly two years ago and the 45-year-old set out to build a team and style of play that had supporters desperate to come into the stadium because they knew their team would go all out to try and win. That was evident from the off on Saturday.

There was no sitting back in an attempt to hit an Arsenal side who were undefeated in the top-flight on the counter; Bruno Guimaraes was pressing William Saliba inside the Gunners' penalty area after just a couple of minutes as Geordies urged him on.

You can see why Newcastle, statistically, have been among the top sides in the Premier League for high turnovers and passes per defensive action, which measures pressing intensity, for some time now. In a way, it was a compliment of sorts that Arsenal went more direct than usual and changed how they play. The Gunners certainly won't be the last to do so at St James'.