Newcastle United to face Gateshead in pre-season as Premier League preparations continue to take shape

The two sides met in a behind-closed-doors fixture last summer as a Miguel Almiron brace and a goal apiece from Matt Ritchie, Joelinton and Sean Longstaff gave the Magpies a 5-1 win at their Darsley Park training base. However, this year’s meeting will come in front of supporters at the Heed’s International Stadium on Saturday, July 15 with a 12.30pm kick-off.

The game means Gateshead will meet the first-teams of both Newcastle and Sunderland during the pre-season schedule as the Black Cats visit the International Stadium exactly one week before the National League side take on the Magpies.

The game will give United supporters a first chance to see their side ahead of their first venture into the Champions League in 20 years and could see a number of summer signings feature for the first time with Eddie Howe preparing to send a first-team squad on the short trip across the Tyne.

The fixture marks United’s first visit to the International Stadium since July 2015 when a Magpies side containing current Heed manager Mike Williamson gave Steve McClaren a 1-0 win in his first game in charge of the club in front of 5,258 supporters.

Williamson has enjoyed an impressive first venture into management with Gateshead, helping the club to the ‘proper’ rounds of the FA Cup on three occasions, winning the National League North title and guiding them to a first major Wembley final when they reached the FA Trophy Final last season. The former Magpies star also kept Gateshead in non-league’s top tier last season despite contending with major injury crisis throughout the campaign and working with a modest budget in an increasingly wealthy league.

Speaking ahead of the FA Trophy Final defeat against FC Halifax Town last month, Magpies boss Howe praised the former United centre-back for the job he has done during his four-year reign at the International Stadium.

He said: “Mike was in here recently getting treatment on a knee problem which looked nasty at the time. We played against them in pre-season and I thought they were a good team. Mike deserves huge credit for what he’s done because it’s tough at that level with limited resources. Many congratulations to them and I hope they go on and win it.”

There will be a number of familiar faces in the Gateshead setup, with former Magpies goalkeeper Rob Elliot currently working as the National League club’s technical director and Adam Campbell, who remains United’s youngster ever appearance maker in European football, is a key part of Williamson’s squad.

Former Magpies academy players Louis Storey, Greg Olley and Tom Allan are also in the Heed ranks - although two more former United youngsters recently departed when Owen Bailey and Dan Ward were unable to agree terms over a new deal.

Tickets for the game have been priced at £20 for adults, £15 for concessions, £10 for young adults aged between 17 and 21-years-old and £5 for those ages 16 and under. Tickets go on sale at 10.30am on Wednesday and are exclusively available via Gateshead’s ticketing website here.