Newcastle Football Club is a historic institution set in the heart of the north east. Founded in 1892, the Magpies have had some memorable ups and downs. Throughout their history, Newcastle has had some legendary forwards who have been prolific in front of goal.
Here are Newcastle’s top ten record goalscorers:
Alan Shearer (206 goals in 405 appearances)
The former England captain is not just a Newcastle legend but will also go down as a Premier League legend too. The forward returned to his hometown club in 1996 and played for the Magpies until 2006, when he retired from the game.
Throughout his Newcastle career, his goals powered the team from the north east. He was desperate to win silverware with his beloved club. Unfortunately, he never lifted silverware with the club. The closest he got was losing back-to-back FA Cup finals in 1998 and 1999.
Shearer’s only major silverware arrived while playing with Blackburn Rovers, as he won the Premier League title. The forward also won the Golden Boot in the English top-flight on three occasions, but only once during his time on Tyneside.
In 2009 after he hung up his boots, Shearer endured a poor stint as interim Newcastle boss as the Magpies suffered relegation from the Premier League.
Jackie Milburn (200 goals in 397 appearances)
Like Shearer, Milburn is regarded as a genuine Toon hero. The legendary forward played for Newcastle from 1943–1957, although his early career with the club was interrupted by World War Two. Unlike Shearer, though, Milburn won silverware during his time with the Magpies.
The Northumberland boy helped Newcastle to win the FA Cup in 1951, 1952 and 1955, having scored in two of the finals. In fact, he scored a brace in a 2-0 win over Blackpool in the ’51 final.
Milburn’s prowess in front of goal is proven by his stats, as he got into double figures in league goals in nine of his 11 seasons playing for Newcastle.
Such was his impact at Newcastle that he now has a statue outside St. James Park, as well as one of the stands being named after the legendary forward.
Len White (153 goals in 269 appearances)
White joined Newcastle in 1952 from Rotherham and was prolific in front of goal until his exit in 1962. The Yorkshireman partnered Milburn in attack for much of the 1950s and was maybe underrated because of Milburn’s presence at the club.
However, White had a good goalscoring ratio in his own right and helped the Magpies to win the 1955 FA Cup. On Milburn’s exit from the club, he took centre stage and his goalscoring record improved before the forward eventually left for Huddersfield in 1962.
Hughie Gallacher (143 goals in 174 appearances)
Gallacher is another also mythical character in the annuls of Newcastle United. The Scot played for Newcastle from 1925–1930 and has the best goals-to-game ratio of any of the forwards on this list, a ratio of 82%.
Despite his relatively short career at Newcastle, he still holds hero status. One of the reasons is that the then-23-year-old played a crucial part in the Magpies’ First Division title victory in season 1926/27. In the title-winning campaign, Gallacher scored 36 goals in 38 league appearances. The forward scored 20-plus goals in all of his seasons in the black and white shirt.
Unfortunately, Gallacher met a tragic end in June 1957 when he threw himself in front of an express train after an alleged domestic incident involving his son. It was a sad end to the life of such a well-loved player.
Malcolm McDonald (121 goals in 228 appearances)
“Supermac’ joined Newcastle in 1971 from Luton Town for a fee of £180,000. He went on to become another famous Magpies’ forward. He made an immediate impact at the north east club by scoring a hat-trick on his debut against Liverpool, with the performance earning his now-famous nickname from the St. James Park faithful.
McDonald’s 30 goals in 52 appearances in his debut campaign for United made him Newcastle’s top scorer for the season. He was also his team’s top goalscorer in four consecutive campaigns from 1973 to 1976. In the latter season, he also won the First Division Golden Boot.
When it came to silverware, it was a case of so near yet so far for McDonald with Newcastle. He helped the Magpies to the 1974 FA Cup final, but they suffered a 3-0 defeat against Liverpool. Two years later, Newcastle also suffered a 2-1 loss to Manchester City in the League Cup final.
Peter Beardsley (119 goals in 326 appearances)
The local boy enjoyed two spells with Newcastle from 1983-1987 and 1993-1997. The two spells turned the little magician into a Magpies hero. He started his career with Newcastle before being released from the club and re-joining in 1983 from Canadian outfit Vancouver Whitecaps for a fee of £150,000.
Beardsley helped Newcastle win promotion back to the First Division in his debut campaign with the club, scoring 20 goals. During the next two seasons with Newcastle, he scored 17 and 19 goals, respectively, in the First Division. However, in the final season of his first spell, Beardsley scored just five goals, and his team suffered relegation to the Second Division.
The England international then enjoyed six years on Merseyside with Liverpool and Everton before a return to Newcastle in 1993. Beardsley’s second spell at the club was highly successful, although he narrowly missed out on guiding Newcastle to the Premier League title on two occasions.
Tommy McDonald (113 goals in 367 appearances)
The Scottish forward joined Newcastle in 1921 from Rangers and proceeded to become prolific in front of goal. McDonald helped the Magpies win the FA Cup in 1924, as United defeated Blackpool 2-0 in the final.
He also played his part in Newcastle winning their fourth English top-flight in 1927. In 1931, the forward joined York City, but he was less prolific for the Yorkshire side than he was during his time in the north east.
Bobby Mitchell (113 goals in 408 appearances)
Mitchell played for Newcastle from 1949–1961 and enjoyed a highly successful career with the north east team. Nicknamed ‘Dazzler’, Mitchell helped the Magpies to win the FA Cup in three years between 1952 and 1955. Mitchell scored in the 1955 cup final in a 3-1 victory over Manchester City at Wembley.
Neil Harris (101 goals in 194 appearances)
Harris is another Scottish player who was potent in front of goal for Newcastle. The forward cost Newcastle £3,000 on his arrival in 1920. He proved to be a bargain, as he played a crucial part in the Magpies FA Cup victory in 1924, as he scored the opening goal in a 2-0 win over Aston Villa in the final. The FA Cup was a favourite competition for Harris, who scored 14 goals in 20 appearances in the cup competition.
Bryan Stanley ‘Pop’ Robson (97 goals in 244 appearances)
Robson played for Newcastle from 1962–1971 and scored a respectable 97 goals in 244 appearances for the Magpies. The forward was part of the Newcastle team that won the Second Division title in 1965, as well as winning the Fairs Cup with the Magpies in 1969, as they defeated Hungarian team Ujpest 6-2 on aggregate over the two-legged final.
Robson went on to enjoy spells with West Ham and Sunderland, amongst other clubs, before retiring from playing in 1986.