FORGET Mark Knopfler's Local Hero, when Newcastle and Middlesbrough ran out for the 107th Tyne-Tees derby yesterday Under Pressure by Queen and David Bowie would have been a more apt introduction.

It's been a while since all three North-East managers have been within earshot of the sound of a steel blade being readied, but, leaving Mick McCarthy and his cast-adrift Sunderland side out of the equation, the situation facing Graeme Souness and Steve McClaren was brought into sharp focus when their under-fire teams clashed at St. James' Park.

The writing seems like it's been on the wall for the acerbic Souness ever since he replaced the amiable Sir Bobby Robson.

Having spent close to £50m in his short time in the hot-seat, including the capture of the English Galactico, Michael Owen, Souness has done little, if anything, to arrest the decline of the Magpies. Injuries have played their part in his side's performances, of that there is no doubt, but you don't see managers in League One or Two, whose budgets wouldn't even cover the cost of stabling Alan Shearer's racehorse, using that to prop up their arguments when asked why their side lies nearer the relegation trapdoor than the league's top table.

Similarly, McClaren, too, has invested heavily - albeit more on wages than on transfer fees - and he too finds himself looking a little nervously at the standings.

Salaries peaking at around £40,000-a-week cannot be sustained if a side finds themselves rubbing shoulders with the likes of Portsmouth, West Bromwich Albion and Birmingham City for too long. With the added distraction of the UEFA Cup, and it is a distraction when you consider Boro have little chance of winning it and it's probably costing them as much to take part as they have so far received in gate receipts, it means the focus is constantly shifting resulting in disjointed and inconsistent performances from week to week.

Admittedly, there is still some way to go to rectify the situation, but chairman Steve Gibson must surely be expecting a top-six finish at the least for the faith he has shown in his manager.

McClaren, like his counterpart further up the A19, has and will probably continue to point to the key players he has missing, George Boateng and Stewart Downing being the biggest misses, but there is enough depth in the squad to at least paper over the cracks.

Two or three wins on the spin can of course put an entirely different complexion on things, and with both teams having some of those in a far worse position than themselves still to play, it might be a case of 'what was all the fuss about?' come May.

On yesterday's evidence though, that breathing space would still appear miles away.

Despite Mark Viduka's girth, Boro appear somewhat lightweight up front when Yakubu is not on song for the full 90 minutes. Equally, when Owen is absent, as he will now be for a couple of months, Newcastle are far too reliant on the soon-to-be-retired Shearer.

Shola Ameobi's withdrawal at half-time in favour of Charles N'Zogbia proved that when the Shearer-Owen tandem is broken up there is noone capable of adequately filling the void.

Albert Luque looks about £8m short of a £9m signing and, if Saturday's stories are true, Souness appears to have disposed of a tempermental Frenchman in Laurent Robert for an equally temperamental Spaniard and a few less quid in the bank.

Where Newcastle and Boro differ is at the back, and it is here where the Teessiders can at least pin their hopes on a change of domestic fortune.

An in-form Chris Riggott and Gareth Southgate do not even bare comparison with yesterday's opposite numbers, Titus Bramble and Jean-Alain Boumsong. One of the main reasons Shay Given is rated so highly is because the workout he gets on a matchday far exceeds that expected of Mark Schwarzer.

With effectively only two relegation places left, both Newcastle and Boro should have enough in their armoury to ensure they retain their status next season, whether the same can be said of their managers remains to be seen.