It may have only have been a pre-season friendly, but when Aaron Hughes stepped up to score the winning penalty against FC Kitchee it helped ease the most painful memory of his career. *********** With nothing other than fitness at stake, the pressure is supposed to be off during pre-season tours - but try telling that to Aaron Hughes. While Newcastle United's trip to South-East Asia was more of a commercial exercise than a football one, Hughes has already had to deal with more than his fair share of uncomfortable moments. The versatile Northern Ireland international has already had to try to ignore his club's seemingly relentless search for a new right-back, the position he has occupied for the past two seasons. He has done so admirably, refusing to sulk about the constant speculation as to who his replacement might be and his demeanour, in both Bangkok and Hong Kong, was as relaxed and as approachable as ever. But it is still a fair assumption to make that he really could have done without being asked to take the decisive penalty against FC Kitchee on Sunday night. It is almost 12 months ago that Hughes missed a vital spot-kick against Partizan Belgrade, a miss which saw the club crash out of the Champions League at the qualification stage. It was a blow the club, arguably, never recovered from and it is a memory which burned a hole in the heart of the man who missed it. Hughes may have been in good company in failing from 12 yards, after all, bigger names than he, Alan Shearer and Kieron Dyer, has also fluffed, but it is always the man who misses last that feels the weight of the defeat more acutely. So when Hughes, just three days after the Magpies had lost yet another shoot-out, this time to the Thai national side after another 1-1 draw in normal time, took the long walk from the centre-circle after Shay Given had saved Kitchee's seventh kick, the visions of last season must have come flooding back. This time, though, there was no mistake, his placement was perfect and Newcastle, for all its lack of importance, had got their hands on a trophy. It was hardly hysterical celebrations or mobbed by your teammates stuff, but as Hughes turned away, the delight on his face, as well as that of Sir Bobby Robson and his teammates, was obvious. "I didn't think I'd ever be the Newcastle player who scored a winning penalty," confessed a player who is about to enter his seventh season as a first team player at St James's Park. "Especially after the miss against Partizan Belgrade. That was a far more important game, but it was still a big relief to see the one on Sunday go in. That's what should have happened against Partizan, but that's all in the past now. "Having said that, if a game came round again that was as important as that Partizan game I'd be very happy to see it go in like the one on Sunday did. "I'd actually wanted to take one against Thailand on Wednesday, but I'd gone for the coin toss to decide which end the penalties would be taken and by the time I got back the five had already been decided." Whether Newcastle do succeed in signing a new right-back before the start of the season, with chairman Freddie Shepherd insisting in Hong Kong that they will get the players they are after before the close of transfer window, Hughes will remain an integral part of Sir Bobby Robson's squad. Indeed, The Journal understands that Hughes will be given every opportunity to try and force his way into the side as a centre-back. Many feel that is still his best position, despite his switch out wide by Robson two years ago. It is also the role he performs for his country when he lines up alongside Sunderland captain George McCartney. For now, though, Hughes, who along with Shola Ameobi, is the only first team regular under Robson to have progressed from the youth ranks, will not allow the uncertainty over his future to effect him. He said: "I'm relishing the competition. Big clubs like Newcastle are always linked with players and we need competition for places in every position." And, with Newcastle's players back home in the North-East, Hughes also found time to reflect on their Asian tour. He said: "The conditions were very difficult in both games. The heat and humidity were unbelievable, but I thought we came through it well. Our fitness must have held up because we seemed to play better in the second halves. "We always knew that getting match fit was the most important thing but the reception we got from the people out there was fantastic." | 
