Welcome to St. James’ Park for this afternoon’s game, and I’m proud to be writing my first programme notes since being elected into the Leadership Group by my teammates.

It’s a really exciting thing to be a part of. Anything you get voted in by your fellow players, it’s a proud moment. I’ve been here for three years so I’m really happy they’ve chosen me to represent them as well as the other leaders.

The Leadership Group now has a really great mix of positions, players who have been through different clubs, and been at the club for different periods of time. We bring a great blend that can help the squad together.

I’m really proud to be part of the group and I’m really going to try and carry on the good work the group has already done.

I’ve got a lot of experience, and I’ve been around the block through a lot of seasons of football. Doing that, you come across a lot of different scenarios that can help the younger players in the squad.

And the nature of being a goalkeeper is that it never goes 100 per cent so you find yourself with quite a good middle line and even way of looking at things.

I have a real enthusiasm for the game, an enthusiasm for playing for this club and at this level. That can get lost in football sometimes: how lucky we are to be in this position.

So it’s about setting a high standard within myself and holding other people to high standards, that’s something that plays a big part in the dressing room.

Today, we welcome Fulham to St. James’ Park for an important Premier League game. Spirits are high in the dressing room after Tuesday’s big win in the UEFA Champions League. We’ve always got quite a good mood in camp, that’s part of the characters that we’ve got in the squad that we always try to stay upbeat, never get too high or get too low.

We’ve been really good in some things this season, and there are definitely things we can improve. This time of year is always about trying to evolve and develop as a team.

Your support at Brighton last week was unbelievable and we were sorry we couldn’t bring home the result. On Tuesday against Benfica, the atmosphere was electric again, and we will need your backing once more this afternoon as we return to the Premier League.