OK Clarky was a fiece little midfielder, but Newcastle helped him out by sending a strong side to attract a crowd of almost 10,000 (9,691).
But the last thing Newcastle need right now is a friendly that turns into a mass brawl!
Players could have been injured, and we all know how important the coming season is to the club.
I'm sure both sides wanted to win ... but for God's sake let's put this fixture into perspective!
A second-half strike by Kevin Nolan won the game in a feisty contest which boiled over twice into skirmishes.
Clark: “I thought we passed the ball around pretty well in the first half but, in the second, our retention was not what I wanted and we gave it away too easily.
“We had to put a lot of effort in against quality opposition who made us work hard, so our fitness levels will have improved a great deal, especially as we had to chase the ball for quite a lot of the second half.
“When we did get on the ball I thought we created two or three chances which we might have capitalised on and I’ve said to the lads that we just need to show a bit more belief in certain situations and we will be fine.
“It was just a competitive match.
“It wasn’t played in a friendly manner whatsoever because both teams were very committed with players wanting to do their best for their clubs.
“That’s what you want. I would rather have that than a game played at testimonial pace with no-one tackling each other.
“I was disappointed with the goal we conceded but there were some good things in our performance and some bad we need to work on."