It’s the most wonderful time of the year. Or is it? Newcastle fans have to wait to see their team in action again as the football calendar takes a break for the Christmas festivities, and it could be seen as something of an unwelcome break as they currently lie top of the Championship standings.

Of course, this is the time of year that you have to spend time with your family playing board games when you’d much rather be at a football match, or at least watching one on TV.

While you have lots of presents (hopefully some football related gifts) and more food than you know what to do with to distract you on Christmas Day, if you can’t handle the wait until Boxing Day for your fix then we have a festive tradition to keep you occupied – a good old Christmas Cracker.

Indeed, this Xmas-in-one-gallery includes a classic football-based teaser, a randomly picked but nonetheless scintillating wonder-strike and an intriguing statistic to impress the family with around the Christmas table.

So, without further ado, have a pull on Newcastle’s Christmas Cracker!

The Teaser - Who am I?

During my career, I played for Newcastle United and Sheffield Wednesday while I have been managed by John Gregory.

A very tricky teaser - so we'll give you one clue. Despite primarily being a defender, he scored a hat-trick while playing as a makeshift striker against Leeds United in 2003.

Click through to the last page to reveal the answer

The wonder-strike - Lovely from Laurent

Thanks to their 4-3 classic in 1996, any match between Liverpool and Newcastle United at Anfield comes with a lot of anticipation and that is exactly what happened in the fourth round of the FA Cup in 2004.

The magic of the cup quickly came to fruition as Bruno Cheyrou gave the hosts the lead in the fourth minute, but the Reds had barely finished celebrating when the Magpies' French winger lined up a free-kick 30 yards out.

Robert was known for his spectacular goals and this was another one to add to the list - following a lengthy run-up, he rifled the ball into Jerzy Dudek's top corner.

It wasn't to be for Newcastle though, as Cheyrou added a second to send Liverpool through to the fifth round.

The Stat

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Newcastle United are flying at the moment and look on course to make an instant return to the Premier League.

However, they were dealt a huge blow on Tuesday with the news that Jonjo Shelvey has picked up a five-match ban for using foul and abusive language towards the officials.

The midfielder has completed the most passes and created the most chances for the Toon in the Championship so far this term, with the latter stat especially impressive considering that he is in a team with the likes of Yoan Gouffran, Ayoze Perez and Matt Ritchie.

The Answer...

Steve Watson (Liverpool 0 – 1 Newcastle 1995)

Steve Watson

It's the moment you've all been waiting for - the answer to our tricky Christmas teaser. Did you get it?

Watson spent eight years at St James' Park - scoring 14 goals in 262 appearances in all competitions - before moving to Aston Villa where he played under John Gregory for two years.

The defender enjoyed a fruitful spell with Everton, where he scored a hat-trick against Leeds United in a rare outing playing up top, before eventually ending his career with Sheffield Wednesday in 2009.

He will likely have a close eye on the encounter between two of his former clubs at St James' Park on Boxing Day.