VICTOR ANICHEBE fired Everton back  into the Premier League’s European challenging spots with his first touch of the  ball at St James Park.

But it was an utterly magnificent  Leighton Baines free-kick which set the  platform for a deserved 2-1 victory.

The England full-back added to his  already glowing reputation with a thunderous 30-yard set-piece just as Everton  looked set to go in at the interval trailing  to Papiss Cisse’s 75-second strike.

Baines stepped up after Fabricio Coloccini had been penalised for a challenge on  Marouane Fellaini and unleashed one of  the contenders for Goal of the Season.

It lifted Everton up into fifth place in  the table, and quickly erased the memory  of Sunday’s cruel defeat to Chelsea.

Anichebe struck seconds after coming  on as a substitute for Steven Naismith,  rapping in from six yards after Nikica  Jelavic had crossed devastatingly from the  left.

But it was Baines’ wonder-strike which  will live long in the memory.

It helped secure victory without Darron Gibson, Kevin Mirallas, Seamus Coleman and Tony Hibbert.

But Marouane Fellaini returned after  suspension to produce another influential display, while Phil Neville turned in a  captain’s performance – at one stage dripping with blood from a head wound.

And as they have done so many times  this season Everton came from behind to  triumph.

Newcastle unearthed an Achilles heel in  Everton’s defensive armoury at Goodison  Park back in September when two long  balls down a marshmallow soft centre  claimed a scarcely deserved draw.

It took just 75 seconds for the same  tactic to bear fruit last night.

The assist came from Newcastle goalkeeper Tim Krul who did nothing more  sophisticated than lump a long ball down  the centre of the pitch.

Johnny Heitinga leaped but mistimed  his jump horribly and the ball bounced  once before dropping neatly onto the  unmarked Papiss Cisse’s head. He looped a  neat finish over the stranded Tim Howard  for a shock opener.

After being credited as a goal-maker,  Krul turned goal denier four minutes  later.

Steven Pienaar was tripped on the edge  of the Newcastle penalty area to give  Leighton Baines a free-kick opportunity  from the kind of range he craves.

Baines’ execution was excellent,  curving the ball around the defensive wall  and into the corner of the target, but Krul  launched himself to his left to fingertip  the ball to safety.

Everton recovered well from their early  setback, without ever looking completely  secure at the back.

A wonderfully incisive move started by  Jelavic and carried on by Fellaini saw  Pienaar given possession in a threatening  position on the left. He threaded a pass  back into the centre to meet the inrushing  run of Fellaini but the big Belgian’s shot  was blocked.

The delicate balance of the match was  underlined in the 31st minute.

First James Perch soared over Heitinga  again, this time to meet Vurnon Anita’s  whipped in free-kick, but his powerful  header bounced back into play off Tim  Howard’s left hand post.