KIERAN TRIPPIER admits Newcastle United’s post-season trip to Australia was “difficult” to deal with, but the Magpies skipper also understands why the club felt compelled to travel halfway around the world.

While the vast majority of Premier League players were able to enjoy some much-needed downtime in the immediate aftermath of the final weekend of the season, Trippier and the rest of Newcastle’s first-team squad went straight from Brentford’s Gtech Community Stadium to Heathrow to board a flight to Australia.

They spent fewer than four days Down Under, playing exhibition matches against Tottenham, which they drew before winning on penalties, and the A-League All Stars, which saw a Newcastle reserves side crash to an embarrassing 8-0 defeat.

The whistlestop tour presented a series of logistical challenges, with no real opportunity to acclimatise to conditions or the time zone in Australia, and Trippier concedes it was not an easy trip to be part of.

“We finished the Brentford game and then flew to Australia straightaway,” said the full-back, who played for the opening 35 minutes of the Tottenham game. “We landed in the morning in Australia, and because it was such a long flight, we were just recovering the rest of that day.

“Then we played the game on Wednesday and recovered on Thursday. We played the All Stars on the Friday – I wasn’t involved, but I was on the bench – and then we flew back.

“I tried to stay on English time. We landed on the Tuesday and were only there a couple of days, so there was no point trying to flip time to their time. I tried to stay on English time, but it was difficult.”

The trip would have been enough of an inconvenience had Trippier been able to enjoy a lengthy summer break on his return to England. Instead, after a couple of days at home with his family, the 33-year-old was heading off again to link up with the England squad ahead of this week’s pre-Euros warm-up matches against Bosnia & Herzegovina and Iceland.

The Northern Echo: Kieran Trippier on press duty with EnglandKieran Trippier on press duty with England (Image: PA)

Trekking to Australia and back was hardly the ideal preparation for a major summer tournament – Tottenham’s James Maddison made the same journey – but with Newcastle trying to grow their global brand, Trippier can understand why the club’s commercial department pushed so hard to get the trip over the line.

“It’s one of those things,” said Trippier. “I’ve done it many times in my career, at different clubs. Obviously, Newcastle’s different to Tottenham or Atletico because they’re trying to branch out and meet people.

“I understand why the club’s doing it, and for us as players, we got out there and played the games. I understand it’s a tournament year and what that brings, but I’m contracted by Newcastle. It’s no problem at all. We played the games and came back. There were no injuries, and now I’m ready to go for my country.”

While Newcastle were landing back in the UK, Manchester United were in the process of beating Manchester City in the FA Cup final, with the result depriving the Magpies of a place in Europe.

Had City lifted the trophy, Newcastle would have been competing in the UEFA Conference League next season. Instead, Manchester United’s success means Eddie Howe’s side have missed out on continental competition.

“It’s definitely a blow,” admitted Trippier. “Of course, you wanted to finish in Europe. It’s one of those things. United won the FA Cup, and obviously that took us out of Europe. There’s no time to dwell on it though. We have to go again next season, and with one game a week, with the players we’ve got, that’s exciting. We can be on the grass more because with three games a week, you can’t really do that. It’s something the club can learn from.”

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Trippier feels there are plenty of lessons to be learned from last season, when Newcastle experienced the highs of competing in the Champions League but were unable to match their previous season’s finish in the league as a succession of injury blows took their toll.

Personally, Trippier also had an up-and-down campaign, with his own injury issues accompanying a mid-season loss of form that saw him make a number of uncharacteristic, but costly, errors.

“It’s mixed emotions really,” he said, when asked to reflect on last season. “Obviously, it’s no excuse, but the injuries we had are there for everybody to see and the amount of days that we had important players out for.

“It’s going to be difficult in that scenario, but players stepped up when they were called upon. To finish in the position we finished in, under the circumstances we went through all season, I think we deserve huge credit.

“We were playing Champions League football, and obviously the majority of the group had never played that before. I think it was a big learning curve for a lot of people at the club this season. Being in Europe, travelling, playing every three days. It’s something that the club can learn from.

“As a whole, I think the season has been a positive, but we’re obviously disappointed that United won the FA Cup. It’s something we can learn from and attack next season.”