Michael Owen had to sweat on his place for the game against Wigan, with pressure from Oba Martins.
And even though he started, there was no guarantee he would see out the 90 minutes.
Thankfully Sam Allardyce had faith in him, even though he missed four glorious chances to score, and he kept him on the field for the full 90 minutes.
And it paid off with a stunning goal that saw the number 10 return to the kind of form that made him the outstanding goalscorer of his generation.
Not Guaranteed A Place For The Toon - But Cert For England!
England head coach Steve McClaren was at St James' Park to see Owen score an 87th-minute winner for Newcastle against Wigan and left the ground purring.
McClaren is under fire, and he knows it. Lose on Saturday and England will most probably be sat watching the European Championships rather than playing in them.
If ever a manager ever wanted a player to come up trumps ... it's McClaren and his faith in Owen,
McClaren: "It was worth waiting for. He must have been frustrated that he had chances that didn't go in but he took his goal magnificently. The timing could not have been better. It is good for him and it is good for England. We'll hope for a bit more of that next week."
England, already weakened by the absence through injury of key players such as Wayne Rooney, Frank Lampard, David Beckham and possibly Steven Gerrard, play Israel in a Euro 2008 qualifier at Wembley on Saturday.