Season › 2013-14 › News Blues edge game of two halves , 30 September, 0comments | Jump to most recent Everton 3 - 2 Newcastle United Everton leapt into fourth place on the back of a scintillating first-half display that yielded three goals — two for home debutant Romelu Lukaku, who also laid one for Ross Barkley — and threatened to sweep Newcastle away in a flood of goals. The Blues eased up after the break, though and allowed Yohan Cabaye to fire a rocket past Tim Howard before Loic Remy sparked late nerves with a goal at the end of a very disappointing second half but the Blues held on to win their third straight in the League. Roberto Martinez was pleased with the display overall, saying that he was not surprised by the reaction from Alan Pardew's side in the second half. "I thought we were very good in the first half," he said. "We defended extremely well and kept Newcastle to very little threat and from that point on some of the attacking play was fascinating to see the link-up play up play with Romelu, Ross [Barkley] and [Kevin] Mirallas. "Once that happens you can score too many goals. Sometimes you go into half-time with a one-goal lead and that allows you to keep the tension. It was normal you are going to get a reaction in the second half. It was a completely different performance. We showed style in the first half and grit into the second." The manager had special praise for Lukaku who was unplayable at times in the first half and had the ball in the net on two other occasions on either side of his brace but was correctly flagged offside on both of those occasions. "Lukaku is a young man who has everything as a striker," the manager said. "Sometimes you see a number nine who is powerful and has a great physical presence — what Romelu brings is a real awareness around him. He is technically really gifted when he has his back to goal and that was a focal point today. "He is a great goalscorer. He looked like a player who felt at home. I want him to enjoy his football, I want him to develop and become as good as he can." » Read more Full Match Report Memory Lane – Match 6 Match Summary and Discussion About these ads © ToffeeWeb