This felt a world away from record-breaking signings and going toe-to-toe with the champions, Man City, but Newcastle United got the job done at Prenton Park to progress in the Carabao Cup. Just.
The much-changed visitors were rocked in the 21st minute when Elliott Nevitt put Tranmere Rovers in front with a goal that screamed the magic of the cup. Nevitt, after all, only became a professional footballer last year.
However, on a night where Tranmere seemed intent on trying to kick Newcastle off the park at times, the Magpies responded thanks in no small part to substitute Kieran Trippier. Eddie Howe would not have planned to use Trippier quite so soon - Emil Krafth suffered a worrying looking knee injury in the first half - but the England international changed the game from the bench after setting up Jamaal Lascelles' equaliser before half-time and teeing up what proved to be Chris Wood's winner after the break just days after converting a stunning free-kick, himself, against City.
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"He just showed his quality," Howe told reporters after the game. "He just showed his class. He's an outstanding footballer and his set-play delivery...you saw his free-kick at the weekend and his set-piece delivery today was of the highest level."
Newcastle have now made it into the third round of the competition for only the second time in the last five years but, to go deep in the tournament, the Magpies are going to have to offer so much more against Crystal Palace than they did on Wednesday night versus League Two opposition. Darren Eales, the club's newly-appointed CEO, will have known that as he watched on at Prenton Park.
Howe should at least have further reinforcements by the time that tie takes place in November and it emerged that the Magpies were on the verge of agreeing a £58m move for Real Sociedad star Alexander Isak just a few hours before this game kicked off. Having already got an 'outstanding footballer' in Trippier, Newcastle hope Isak can also make a real impact - and not just in next round.
Just as the sight of sporting director Dan Ashworth and head of recruitment Steve Nickson travelling to Spain to clinch the deal summed up his new era, the game at Prenton Park was a chance for Newcastle to show how far they had come. After giving Man City an almighty scare at the weekend, this trip to the Wirral was an opportunity to banish the ghosts of lower league past.
Tranmere may be languishing in 17th place in League Two, but you could see why broadcasters picked this game in the hope of a potential giant killing given Newcastle's longstanding struggles in cup competitions. Indeed, it said it all that Tranmere had reached a final more recently than Newcastle and, even then, that was back in 2000.
Newcastle have been knocked out of a cup competition by a lower league outfit on eight occasions in the last decade alone and there have been painful defeats against Brentford, Oxford United and Sheffield Wednesday along the way. Last season's humiliating FA Cup exit at the hands of Cambridge United served as a timely reminder to these players about what can happen against lower league opposition but, in a way, that 1-0 loss was also a turning point of sorts for a group who were low on confidence at the time. A more resilient Newcastle have since lost just five games in all competitions so was it any wonder that Howe did not feel the need to remind his players about that defeat before the match?
There is a very different mentality and dynamic within the squad and Howe's vow to take the cups seriously did not feel like an empty promise given that ambition is shared by those at the top, too, unlike in the Ashley era. Those 2,200 Geordies in the Cowshed End could genuinely dare to dream of a cup run starting on Wednesday night.
Although Howe made 10 changes from the weekend,, the Newcastle boss still fielded a strong side and was still able to call upon senior internationals in Emil Krafth and Chris Wood. Matt Targett returned from injury and Jamaal Lascelles, Matt Ritchie and Paul Dummett had all experienced the pain of a cup shock before and desperately did not want to have to go through that again. Elliot Anderson, meanwhile, was making his first competitive start for the club.
Newcastle sprung an early surprise on Tranmere by fielding Ritchie on the right and Jacob Murphy on the left when, traditionally, the pair have played on the opposite flanks. Murphy was soon played in with just four minutes on the clock following Sean Longstaff's cross-field ball, but the winger's effort was comfortably saved by Mateusz Hewelt.
For all the possession Newcastle enjoyed - 75% at one point - the much-changed visitors struggled to click as Tranmere roughed them up. Anderson, a bright spark throughout, dragged an effort just wide from the edge of the box after being teed up by Longstaff in the 19th minute.
Tranmere were very much in the game and the hosts took their chance with their first effort on goal just a couple of minutes later. Tranmere easily drew Newcastle players out of position with an intricate passing move inside their own half and a scooped pass sent Josh Dacres-Cogley racing into space down the right wing. The wing-back coolly squared the ball across to Elliot Nevitt, who only turned pro last year, and the striker's close-range effort took a deflection off Karl Darlow and nestled in the net.
Newcastle players looked shell-shocked and the Magpies were dealt a further blow a few minutes later when Emil Krafth was stretchered off. However, Krafth's replacement, Kieran Trippier, made an instant impact. Newcastle worked on set-plays in the build-up to this game and it was Trippier who sent in a teasing corner with just his second touch in the 40th minute and there was a bloodied Lascelles to knock it in at the second attempt to level up the tie.
You can be sure Tranmere boss Micky Mellon pinpointed Trippier's deliveries during his half-time team talk a few minutes later, but there was little the hosts could do about them. Sure enough, Trippier stepped up once more in the 52nd minute and, this time, Chris Wood got on the end of the right-back's corner to head Newcastle in front. It proved decisive.
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