But ... for once ... the Irishman is in the shadow of the Easington-born goalkeeper, and Harper doesn't seem in the mood to give up the stardom just yet.
Even more so now he's getting rave reviews from the opposition!
Shay Has A Fight On His Hands!
Lee Bowyer hailed his former Newcastle team-mate after Harper pulled off a breathtaking save to stop the West Ham midfielder scoring on his return to St James' Park.
Bowyer: "I thought I'd done him.
"It went through the defender's legs. I just thought there were so many bodies I had to try and keep it low, it might get a deflection.
"It went straight through his legs and I thought 'yes, it's in!' He just got an arm to it. He's a top-class goalkeeper and, maybe another time I'll beat him.
Bowyer: "I thought I'd done him.
"It went through the defender's legs. I just thought there were so many bodies I had to try and keep it low, it might get a deflection.
"It went straight through his legs and I thought 'yes, it's in!' He just got an arm to it. He's a top-class goalkeeper and, maybe another time I'll beat him.
"It was good to come back and see old faces but we've gone away with the wrong result so it's not so good in that respect. We'll just keep moving on and see how we go."