Newcastle United academy goalkeeper Aidan Harris caught the headlines when he scored an incredible goal from his own half in their win over Fulham in the Premier League 2.
Newcastle United's Goalkeeper Aidan Harris (1) celebrates with teammates after he scores Newcastle's second goal from the half way line during the Premier League 2 Fixture between Newcastle United U21 and Fulham U21
Aidan Harris scored an incredible goal for the Newcastle under-21s(Image: (Photo by Newcastle United/Newcastle United via Getty Images))
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Young Newcastle United goalkeeper Aidan Harris left teammates stunned when he scored an incredible goal from well beyond his halfway line for the under-21s on Friday night.
The 19-year-old scored the second of three goals in the match, as the Magpies academy side walked away as winners over Fulham in the Premier League 2. A penalty scored by Sean Neave helped to give Newcastle the lead in just 12 minutes, with Michael Mills scoring his first goal of the season in the 70th to wrap up the points.
While that ended up being just the fourth win of the season for the under-21s in the league, out of 14 played so far, the match will be better remembered for Harris' input. After a high clearance from a Fulham defender, the goalkeeper was called into action to stop the opposition getting behind the defensive line.
He managed just that, clearing the ball with some gusto, sweeping up the mess that could've brought the visitors back into the game. What happened after was nothing short of miraculous.
The clearance from Harris travelled well beyond the halfway line and over the outstretched hand of the Fulham goalkeeper, Alex Borto, and into the back of the net.
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It was an incredible moment for the shot-stopper, with it unsurprisingly being his first goal at youth level, though he has four assists to his name in his career. “It’s just good to spread the goals around the team,” said Newcastle under-21s interim head coach Robbie Stockdale to the Shields Gazette.
“As soon as he struck the ball, I thought that’s going to be close. I actually played in a game when the Tranmere goalkeeper scored in League One and it’s very rare.
"I’ve not seen it since then. He’s obviously telling everyone he meant it and he’s chuffed to bits. It’s just one of those things. He can strike a lovely ball, he had the wind behind him and he caught it flush. These things happen.”
NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 20: Newcastle United's Goalkeeper Aidan Harris (1) celebrates with teammates after he scores Newcastle's second goal from the half way line during the Premier League 2 Fixture between Newcastle United U21 and Fulham U21 at Whitley Park on February 20, 2026 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. (Photo by Newcastle United/Newcastle United via Getty Images)(Image: (Photo by Newcastle United/Newcastle United via Getty Images))
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It's an incredible moment for Harris, but one that is unlikely to have the same impact as his quality of performances between the sticks for the Newcastle academy.
The youngster is still awaiting a senior debut in the professional leagues, having largely played for the youth sides, along with a short loan to Coleraine from late last year until the new year.
Harris has featured in three matchday squads for the senior Newcastle side, all of which have been in the Champions League, which has a larger squad available. The first of those was back in 2023, when he was on the bench for the Magpies in their 0-0 draw with AC Milan.
The most recent appearances have come against PSG in the final league phase match, as well as Qarabag, where he was an unused substitute in the 6-1 thrashing.
While he looks to progress his career to turn those squad appearances into first-team minutes, the 19-year-old is certainly making a name for himself with the academy.
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