Newcastle’s Andy Carroll ‘broke team-mate’s jaw’

The man has nerve, as well as a good right, if reports are to be believed. Newcastle United's 20-year-old striker Andy Carroll scored the winner for the Magpies in their 1-0 defeat at Doncaster, just hours after he was accused of breaking the jaw of teammate Steven Taylor.

Splashed all across the sports pages of the press on Tuesday morning were allegations concerning a training ground spat between  Carroll and centre-back Taylor, a bust-up that ended with the 24-year-old Taylor – who had just returned to training after a knee injury - being carted off to hospital to have his jaw wired. According to the Newcastle Chronicle "Taylor was confronted by Carroll while he was in the ice bath area and violence flared." The dispute apparently concerned text messages sent by Taylor to an ex-girlfriend of Carroll's, all grimly reminiscent of last month's scandal involving John Terry and Wayne Bridge.

But even though Carroll reportedly needed medical attention to his hand, the striker shrugged off that, and the media interest, to coolly score his 16th goal of the season in the defeat of Doncaster. The win consolidates Newcastle's position at the top of the championship, moving them five points clear of second place West Bromwich Albion and within touching distance of a return to the Premier League.

"He is a player in good goalscoring form and he is a vital player for us," said Newcastle boss Chris Hughton, who stonewalled any questions about the alleged training ground fracas. "He took his goal very well because he still had a lot of work to do."

But whether Carroll will be able to join in any promotion celebrations depends on the crown prosecution service. Though Northumbria Police said they have not received any complaint regarding the Taylor incident, Carroll is currently awaiting a Crown Court trial next month on charges of assault  following an alleged fight in Newcastle nightclub in December in which a glass was smashed into a man's face.

He was also cautioned by police in 2008 for an assault on a woman  near Newcastle's Bigg Market district. And Carroll's barney with Taylor wasn't the first time either that the England Under-21 frontman has squared up to a teammate on the training ground; in January last year he and Charles N'Zogbia traded punches after the French winger was on the wrong end of a heavy tackle.

With the volatile Joey Barton coming off the bench against Doncaster last night to make his first appearance for the Magpies since September, life on the Tyne promises to be as tumultuous as ever in the tail end of the season. ·