Best and Ireland to be punished for nightclub antics

Newcastle United pair Leon Best and Stephen Ireland are to be punished for their visit to a nightclub on the eve of the Premier League clash with Stoke last weekend.

The pair incurred the wrath of Magpies manager Alan Pardew for visiting the Tup Tup Palace nightclub in the city on the Friday night before Newcastle’s clash with Stoke, despite the fact that neither player was involved in what turned out to be a crushing 4-0 defeat at the Britannia Stadium.

Best and Ireland, along with reserve team player Stephen Folan, formerly of Salthill Devon, were pictured baring their chests on the nightclub’s Facebook page, an incident for which they have since apologised.

Despite the apology, a clearly incensed Pardew intends to internally discipline the trio and will do so once Best returns from international duty, after the 24-year old joined up with the Ireland squad ahead of the European qualifier with Macedonia on Saturday and the subsequent friendly with Uruguay three days later.

“All I want to say on that is that as Leon Best has travelled with Ireland, we've not faced each other yet," said Pardew, quoted in the Newcastle Evening Chronicle.

“There will be discipline involved, for sure, but I want to see all three together in my office before I say anything more.”