Danny Webber's 68th-minute header broke the deadlock at St James' Park on Saturday, and it could have been worse because Alan Quinn was only denied a late second by a post.
Man for man the Blades were far better on the day, if only because they were prepared to roll up the sleeves and have a go. The Toon players were out for an afternoon walk in the park, and got exactly what they deserved.
Glenn Roeder splashed out all his £15m summer spending money on two players, Obafemi Martins and Damien Duff. And the painful truth is that Alan Shearer, the man upon whose shoulders hopes rested for a decade, has not been replaced.
On the other hand, that must have delighted Blades boss Neil Warnock, who was more than happy with his trip to Tyneside.
Warnock: "Another win and they will be talking about Europe. When you see your team give everything, that is all a manager can ask for.
"We played the game in the right way, you saw the hunger we had and the enthusiasm.
"Yes, we are limited but a manager can only work with what he has got and they are a genuine bunch of players."