All eyes were on St James' Park this afternoon as Newcastle United finally returned to Premier League action at home to high-flying Sheffield United.
It marked Newcastle's first match since the Premier League shut down in mid-March, as the coronavirus crisis swept the country and affected thousands of families.
But as the action returned on Wednesday, a poignant moment before the match had everybody talking, as the Magpies' stars took a knee alongside their counterparts from Bramall Lane.
The powerful statement comes in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement, with George Floyd's death in Minneapolis, in the USA, sparking protests across the world - including here in Newcastle.
'Taking the knee' has become a common form of protest for the Black Lives Matter movement ever since NFL star Colin Kaepernick took the action ahead of a match in 2016 during the US national anthem.
Kaepernick took the action as a symbol of rejection against his country which he says is a 'state of oppression' for black people.
Despite his high profile status in the game, Kaepernick remains a free agent after his actions polarised opinion in the county and he has since taken legal action against the league claiming the NFL were deliberately keeping away from the competition in case he caused more controversy.
Floyd's death has brought the protest back into the global eye and Newcastle's players followed the lead of a number of other high profile sportsmen by taking the knee ahead of kick-off on Sunday afternoon.
