JOHN CARVER can vividly remember the despair that accompanied Newcastle’s last relegation to the Championship.

Now as he prepares to lead his side in tomorrow’s ‘Survival Sunday’ decider with West Ham, the Magpies head coach cannot even begin to contemplate what it would be like to experience a repeat.

Six years ago, Newcastle crashed out of the top-flight as they suffered a 1-0 defeat at Aston Villa, and while Carver was not part of the club’s backroom staff at the time, he felt unable to speak for the best part of an hour as he watched the drama unfold in a pub in the city.

Some of the supporters in the away end at Villa Park were in tears as Damien Duff’s own goal confirmed the Magpies’ relegation, while others vented their fury at owner Mike Ashley and the under-performing players who had been unable to prevent the club’s demise.

All of those emotions will be in evidence again if Newcastle fail to win tomorrow and Hull City claim the victory over Manchester United that would enable them to scramble to safety, but whereas Alan Shearer was the hapless figure in the technical area at Villa Park, this time around it would be Carver taking full responsibility for the mess.

The boyhood Newcastle fan has experienced a succession of difficult moments since replacing Alan Pardew in late December, but with his club’s top-flight status hanging by a thread ahead of the final game of the season, he cannot bring himself to imagine what the worst-case scenario would look like.

“I know what it felt like the last time this team was relegated, and there are four or five players in there who know what that felt like too,” said Carver. “I’d returned from Canada (where he had been head coach of Toronto FC) and was sitting in a pub watching the game on TV.

“I saw the reaction of our fans after the game, and I saw the reaction of Alan Shearer and what it meant to him. I saw the emotions that the players on the pitch were going through, and I saw my own reaction. I didn’t speak to anyone for an hour after the game because it was so hard to take.

“That has stayed with me, and I remember thinking at the time, ‘I hope that never, ever happens to me’. As it happens, I saw Alan the other day and we talked about what his feelings were, and I told him what I felt at the time. I just said, ‘I hope I don’t have to experience that’.

“Hopefully, I don’t, and I haven’t even contemplated that side of things. It doesn’t even bear thinking about, and it’s not something that’s in my mind. All I’m thinking about is this club staying in the Premier League.”

The key difference to the final-day events of 2009 is that, this time, Newcastle’s fate remains in their own hands. Six years ago, Shearer’s side kicked off at Villa Park in 18th position, knowing that even if they won their final fixture, they could still end up in the Championship.

Tomorrow, the equation is simple. Win, and Newcastle will be playing Premier League football again next season. Draw or lose, and they will be reliant on Hull failing to beat a Manchester United side who could well be in holiday mode.

Carver readily accepts that, in an era of digital technology and instant media access, it will be all but impossible to ignore what is happening at the KC Stadium. However, just as Sunderland successfully took themselves out of the equation with Wednesday’s draw at Arsenal, so Newcastle can render all external factors irrelevant if they win. Admittedly, however, that is something they have not been able to manage in any of their last ten matches.

“Six years ago, it wasn’t in our hands,” said Carver. “But if we win on Sunday, we won’t have to bother about anybody else. That’s why Hull would love to be in our shoes.

“But I think we’ll have to win. I said a couple of weeks ago that four points was the target – we got a point against West Brom, and I feel as though we have to win the final game.”

With a sit-in protest planned for after tomorrow’s final whistle, it remains to be seen what the mood in the stands is like during the game.

A powder-keg of emotions has been bottling up for the last couple of months, and there is every chance it will be released one way or another tomorrow. However, for as long as Newcastle’s fate continues to hang in the balance, Carver is urging the club’s fans to shelve their grievances and support the players who will be striving to secure survival.

“My message to the fans is, ‘We need you this weekend’, he said. “Put all the differences aside – whatever you think of me, whatever you think of Lee Charnley or Mike Ashley, forget about that. Get behind this team for the 90 minutes of the game, and then whatever happens, we can have the inquest after that.”