This is why Gateshead fans hope to celebrate Blyth goal

It is rare to see a Blyth goal celebrated by the Gateshead faithful – but Mike Williamson’s latest signing is hoping to make it a regular occurrence.
Jacob Blyth. Picture via Gateshead FC.Jacob Blyth. Picture via Gateshead FC.
Jacob Blyth. Picture via Gateshead FC.

The former Newcastle United centre-back added to his striking options on Friday when former Barrow and Motherwell frontman Jacob Blyth put pen to paper on deal lasting until the end of the season.

The announcement of the deal provoked a humorous online conversation surrounding Blyth’s surname being shared with that of one of Gateshead’s biggest local rivals.

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Some supporters suggested that Blyth should renamed himself Jacob Northumberland, or simply just go by the name of Jacob.

Blyth – or should that be Northumberland – took all comments in good humour and revealed that he was unaware of the rivalry with the Spartans until a until just a few days before he officially joined Gateshead.

He told The Echo: “I didn’t really know much of the rivalry or that my surname would cause such a stir when I signed.

“I had a guy fixing my boiler up here earlier this week and he made me aware of it and what it meant to the supporters.

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“I couldn’t believe it, having the surname of one of your biggest rivals is never ideal, I guess.

“I suppose supporters might just have to go with ‘Howay Jacob’ when I am playing and hopefully scoring goals for this club.

“But I have to make sure that I am giving them a chance to use that by scoring goals and that’s what I hope to do.”

The addition of Blyth has given Heed boss Williamson something different to consider at the top end of the pitch.

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Paul Blackett, Macaulay Langstaff and Jordan Preston all offer pace and trickery and former Sunderland youngster Jordan Cook prefers to operate just off a frontman.

But Blyth relishes the prospect of providing an outlet in the lead role and is a powerful alternative to the other options in the Heed squad.

The striker is confident that he has a part to place in Gateshead’s push to return to the National League and insisted that he will get goals with service from the likes of Nicky Deverdics and Greg Olley.

He explained: “A striker’s mission is always to score goals and I think I am a little bit different to what they have got.

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“I want to play down the middle and I am a bit bigger than the other strikers, I know that I can always impact on defenders.

“I am sure I will get the service; a lot of my goals will come from crosses and hopefully we can see plenty of them.

“They are trying to get back up into the National League and I want to be a part of that by scoring goals and doing my job as a striker.”

Whether he is called Jacob, Blyth or even Northumberland, Heed supporters will hope that their new striker completes his mission and helps their club return to non-league’s top tier, no matter what his surname is.