IN every season, there are a handful of moments that will live long in the memory. Most are goals, or maybe great saves. Sometimes, a mazy dribble makes the pulse race, or a thundering tackle that prevents an opponent scoring. When the story of Newcastle United’s current promotion race is written, however, there will understandably be a lot of focus on ‘that pass’.

Eighty-nine minutes into Newcastle’s top-two tussle with Brighton, and Matt Ritchie found himself in possession deep in his own half. Looking up, he saw Christian Atsu breaking into space 50 yards away down the left-hand side.

With a swing of his right boot, Ritchie arrowed the ball straight onto Atsu’s instep, enabling the winger to cross for Ayoze Perez to slot home a winner. Cue pandemonium in the away end, and a victory that took Newcastle back to the top of the table, and eight points clear of this evening’s opponents, Huddersfield Town.

Jonjo Shelvey might have developed a justified reputation for being the ‘long-ball king’, but Ritchie’s latest effort was the equal of anything his fellow midfielder has produced during his time in a black-and-white shirt. The Scotland international has scored 12 goals this season, but in terms of personal satisfaction, that one searching pass topped the lot.

“It was a pleasing one,” said Ritchie. “The goal at the end of it makes it ‘that pass’ – Jonjo has probably hit five or six of them this season, but because they haven’t ended in a goal, they probably don’t stick in the memory as much.

“It was pleasing because it was an important game, and it was a defining moment. I’d say it was as pleasing as any goal I’ve scored.

“It was a good goal all round, and I thought the performance all night, even though we were 1-0 down for the majority of the game, was very good. We were probably on top in the second half, and once we equalised, if any team was going to win it, it was going to be us.

“It was very pleasing to have an impact on the game, but it was a great touch from Christian and a great finish from Ayo. It was a great team goal.”

If things go to plan in the next couple of months, it could be remembered as the moment Newcastle’s promotion ambitions were crystallised, although tonight’s trip to the John Smith’s Stadium could be every bit as significant in terms of cementing a position in the top two.

Ritchie has already been promoted from the Championship once in his career, having been a key part of the Bournemouth side that claimed the second-tier title two seasons ago.

The winger scored four goals in the final three games of that title-winning campaign, and sees similarities between the spirit and camaraderie that drove the Cherries to the title and the togetherness that is helping propel the current Newcastle side back towards the top-flight.

“Desire was the main thing in that (Bournemouth) team,” said Ritchie. “I remember playing Bolton in a big game on a Monday night, and we won 3-1. It was more about desire and will to win, rather than performance on the night.

“It’s about, ‘Have you got the mentality to win this game’, and that Bournemouth team had that. It’s a bit different here in the sense that, at Bournemouth, we came up through the leagues together. We’ve come together this season here, but we’re part of a fantastic group and the lads who have joined have helped that.

“The boys who are here from last season had to get over that disappointment, and we knew what we were coming in for, which was to help the promotion push. The fact that we had a set goal coming in has helped.

“It’s not like we thought, ‘Let’s see how it starts and go from there’. We knew from day one that we had to get promoted, and it shows the strength and togetherness we’ve got that we’re on track to do that.”

Newcastle’s promotion ambitions suffered what has proved a rare dent when they lost to Huddersfield in their second game of the season.

Having also lost to Fulham in their opening fixture, that left Rafael Benitez’s side with no points from their opening two matches, a start that set alarm bells ringing in the wake of last season’s relegation.

With his extensive experience of life in the Championship, Ritchie was not surprised at Newcastle’s slow start, although he admits he was taken aback by the frenzied reaction to August’s disappointments.

With the benefit of hindsight, losing to Huddersfield does not look such a bad result, and while plenty of neutral observers have been predicting the Terriers’ demise throughout the campaign, Ritchie always expected David Wagner’s side to remain part of the promotion-chasing pack.

“It was a tough game when we played Huddersfield,” he said. “They are a good side. People had obviously never been in the Championship, and that’s why they thought it was a crisis after two games, but I knew what the Championship is about so it was no surprise to me.

“The surprising thing was the reaction of people. Some were maybe thinking we would be rolling teams over week in, week out. But that’s just not the case.

“Fulham beat us in the first game, it was small margins, but they’re a good side who are having a good season. They’re going to be a tough task in a couple of weeks as well.

“It’s no surprise to me that Huddersfield are where they are. I thought they were very good at St James’ Park, the way they pressed off the ball and counter-attacked. They’ve built on that good start they had and sustained it.”