'I'm one of them really' - Wright on 38 years with Newcastle

Earlier this month, head physio Derek Wright ended his time at Newcastle after 38 years of service at St James' Park.

Wright's lung-busting determination to reach injured players on the pitch became legendary on Tyneside, with the cheers echoing round the ground and even the players getting involved in helping him be the first to get to his man.

"I was running on once and Darren Peacock actually blocked their physio on his way over!" he told the club website. "It was a good rapport with the crowd - that was the main thing. That was what I liked. I'm one of them, really, I suppose."

A club icon, he spoke with the Newcastle website in a wide-ranging interview, external that covered everything from sporting tutus to getting Gazza cleaning the treatment room.

"For some bizarre reason, I ended up with a pink fairy outfit with Dr. Martens, and the rest is history," he said of a Christmas fancy dress party.

"I just remember waving down a taxi at the end of the night with my wand."

He's excited about what the future holds for the club under Eddie Howe.

"I think now, with the new owners and new investment, I'm probably leaving at the wrong time," he said. "But it's the circle of life.

"There's a fantastic future coming up here. The facility you'll probably end up getting is different to me trying to de-rust the multigym at Benwell with an oiling can when I first arrived!"