AS a parting gesture, Gary Speed's final act as a Newcastle player could not have been more fitting.

The 34-year-old had just played his second game of the club's pre-season tour of the Far East, scoring a crucial spot-kick as the Magpies enjoyed a rare penalty shoot-out win over Hong Kong club side FC Kitchee.

But, while the rest of his teammates paraded The United Christian Medical Service Charity Challenge Cup around the Hong Kong Stadium, Speed headed straight for the small band of Newcastle fans on the far side of the stadium.

He looked momentarily at the winner's medal in his possession, and then tossed it nonchalantly into the clamouring throng.

Right to the last, Speed remained selflessness personified. The man who had given so much to Newcastle fans in his six-and-a-half years with the club couldn't resist giving that little bit more.

Five months earlier, on the eve of becoming the first player to make 500 Premiership appearances, Speed had spoken of the one burning desire continuing to drive him forwards.

"It would be a massive regret if I left here without a winner's medal," confessed Speed. Sadly, that is just what has happened.

Today's £750,000 move to Bolton Wanderers doesn't just signal the end of another career at St James' Park, it deprives Newcastle of one of their most loyal and dependable servants.

Speed was already a league title winner with Leeds United when Kenny Dalglish paid £5.5m to sign him from Everton in February 1998.

He had spent almost all of his career on the left flank before moving to the North-East, so it was inevitable that he would be asked to slot into that position for the Magpies.

His debut came in a 1-0 home defeat to West Ham but, while his industry and energy made an instant impact on his manager, it failed to win over a Geordie support only recently deprived of the dazzling wing play of David Ginola.

Speed's early days on Tyneside were accompanied by heated discussions over how he would fit into a side rapidly losing their way.

Dalglish never really answered that question, but his successor Ruud Gullit went some way towards appreciating what the midfielder could offer.

The Dutchman is rightly derided for much of what he did at St James' Park, but his decision to switch Speed to a central position was to shape the heart of Newcastle's midfield for many years to come.

Sir Bobby Robson was certainly in no doubt as to what he had to offer, and Speed quickly became the rock around which he built the rest of his side.

Strong, reliable midfielders have been in vogue in recent years with Roy Keane playing a pivotal role in Manchester United's sustained success and Patrick Vieria providing the inspiration for Arsenal's record-breaking run last season.

Speed might not have reached the same heights as those two, but his presence has been every bit as vital to a Newcastle side who have gone a long way towards re-establishing themselves amongst English football's top four. In total he made 284 appearances for the club.

Robson could have forced Speed to stay at St James' in the knowledge that he was going to be used sparingly next term. The fact that he hasn't suggests the selflessness has not been one-way.

A lack of a medal means Speed leaves with regrets. It is to be hoped Robson does not harbour similar feelings as the season unfolds.