Sir Bobby Robson, Graeme Souness and Glenn Roeder all tried to bring Dean Ashton to St James' Park, and on two occasions as least the England-Under 21 international "thought about it".
Newcastle Could Have Had West Ham's Strike Force
Ashton missed the entire campaign for the Hammers after breaking his ankle on England duty last August - but Bellamy believes he has the mental strength to return to the goalscoring form which saw him called up to the national squad.
As for Bellamy .... well ... I'm sure you already know ALL about Bellars. The Welsh international suffered a cruciate knee injury when he was still a Norwich player in the summer of 1999 and was ruled out for 10 months - and he admits it takes time to rebuild confidence after such a bad injury.
As for Bellamy .... well ... I'm sure you already know ALL about Bellars. The Welsh international suffered a cruciate knee injury when he was still a Norwich player in the summer of 1999 and was ruled out for 10 months - and he admits it takes time to rebuild confidence after such a bad injury.
Bellamy: ""Deano has had a big, big injury - and I know what that is like when you are out for a year.
"He needs to get himself right, get his ankle right and then get games under him.
"It took me a while to get my confidence back after a similarly big injury - but as soon as he gets it right, we'll all know about it.
"He's a top player, and I'm looking forward to seeing him back in action."
"I did my cruciate at Norwich, and it's very hard to come back from something like that.
"You basically need somebody to take you out in training to get the confidence in your body back.
"You know then that you're going to be okay and reassure yourself that it's going to be fine."
Bellamy led the line in a strong West Ham side which went down 3-2 at Coca-Cola League Two side MK Dons on Wednesday night - but the Welsh striker believes the Hammers squad is good enough to challenge for a European place this season.
Scott Parker is a doubt for the start of the season after tweaking his knee ligaments, and new winger Julien Faubert will be out for six months with a ruptured Achilles.
But Bellamy believes the signing of Freddie Ljungberg from Arsenal could be the key.
Bellamy: "Pre-season is a tough time for any team, and losing Scott for four weeks is a big blow. But we've got a good squad here, and I knew that before I signed.
"I knew a lot of the players here before I came, and there's quality throughout the squad.
"We've got a good chance this year, and I think Europe is a possibility.
"That's the first glimpse I've had of Freddie, but I know what a talent is. He is exceptional, and everyone at the club is excited by him being here."