Teenager Ameobi, the younger brother of Magpies stalwart Shola, picked the perfect moment to score his first goal for the club as he fired in an 113th-minute winner in front of the travelling fans. Newcastle had looked set to suffer a shock exit after they trailed to Chris Dagnall's 14th-minute opener late into normal time. But Ryan Taylor's free-kick 10 minutes from the end - his second in as many games after deciding the weekend's derby win at Sunderland - equalised before Ameobi's heroics. And on a day that fan favourite Joey Barton was considering a contract offer from QPR, Pardew believes a new Tyneside star might have been born tonight. "He's a player that we are excited about as a staff," he said. "He has a lackadaisical sort of style. You think sometimes: 'Do it quick Sammy'. "He looks like he's slow, then he draws two or three players in and wriggles out of it and then he's gone. He's that quick. "The goal summed him up what he does in training. It was no surprise for us. "He's going to be a big player for us. "He's got a good brother and great parents. I'm excited about him." Pardew made six changes for the trip to Scunthorpe, who are without a win in League One, and the new-look team were lucky to only go into the break 1-0 behind. The former West Ham boss admitted he feared for his side at that point, although they responded with a dominant display after the interval that was only undermined by some glaring misses. Leon Best and Peter Lovenkrands were the chief culprits, and while goalkeeper Tim Krul also had to come to their rescue, Pardew was happy to only reflect on the positives of a lucky escape. "At half-time I was thinking this could be a very negative night for me here," he said. "The players have come in and having not done well and we've lost the game - but it turned out very, very positive. "Some of them played very well. (Yohan) Cabaye was terrific as were the centre-halves. The subs made an impact. "It turned out we've won and we're in the hat." Pardew was unable to provide any update on the status of Barton after the outspoken midfielder completed a medical at QPR today. Barton Tweeted this evening that he now needed "some thinking time and space" to ponder a contract offer - a request Pardew said he would grant him. "I think that's where Joey is if I'm honest. I don't think I can add to that," he added. "I think he trusts me as a manager. He trusts the staff here and has a bond with the players. "He knows he can come back here and we'll take care of him. At the same time he's got an offer that is making him think to go elsewhere." Scunthorpe boss Allan Knill found reason for cheer despite his side's defeat. "We've been playing like that all season, we just haven't got the points on the board that merit the performances," said Knill, whose side sit near the foot of the League One table without a win in five games. "I'm delighted that on TV the players showed what they could do. "I think we've got some really good players. "As long as we're positive and exciting it will change. "It's not a disastrous start. We've lost one in five. I'm sure it will change."
