Newcastle United have moved into the top half of the Premier League table with a 2-1 win over West Bromwich Albion at St James' Park.

They took the lead in the first period when Demba Ba converted from close range, but Romelu Lukaku headed an equaliser for West Brom in the second period.

However, there was to be late drama when Papiss Cisse scored his first Premier League goal since May to secure all three points for the Magpies.

Here, Sports Mole dissects the action between the two Premier League rivals.

Match statistics:

Newcastle:
Shots 9
On target 5
Possession 51%
Corners 6
Fouls 13

West Brom:
Shots 8
On target 3
Possession 49%
Corners 4
Fouls 7

Was the result fair?

On the balance of play, it would be difficult to argue that either side deserved all three points. The possession statistics tell their own story about how close the match was, but West Brom were the better side in the second period. It was one of those matches that could have ended a draw, or gone either way and it would have been just about right.

Newcastle's performance

6/10. One thing is for certain, Newcastle have not started the season the team that they were in the last campaign. They enjoyed plenty of possession in the first period, but struggled to create any chances of note. They had five attempts on target, but Ben Foster was never really troubled.

West Brom's performance

6/10. West Brom have now been beaten by a late goal in their last two matches. They are an improving side, but the way they play always leaves them open to concede. It was a strange decision not to start Shane Long, but Lukaku had an impressive afternoon of football.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Fabricio Coloccini: The Argentine defender was simply immense this afternoon. Newcastle missed his presence when he was away but he is back with a vengeance.

Biggest gaffe of the match

Ba had a glorious chance to hand his side the lead 15 minutes into the match, but he somehow headed wide from close range when it looked easier to score.

Referee performance

Chris Foy had a fairly straightforward 90 minutes of action. The Englishman largely went unnoticed which is always a good sign for a referee.

What next?

Newcastle: The Magpies will attempt to continue their winning run when they travel to Anfield next weekend.

West Brom: Steve Clarke welcomes newly-promoted Southampton to the Hawthorns next Monday as he attempts to continue his side's solid home form this season.