Newcastle United’s first-team players have established a poker school and there could be no more appropriate pastime as they seek to protect the spirit that testing circumstances dredged from them this summer.

This, after all, is the club where Chris Hughton, the caretaker manager, keeps his cards close to his chest and where Mike Ashley, the owner, whose business model would appear to be based on extravagant gambles, is deliberating whether to stick or twist.

Much is being entrusted to luck at St James’ Park at present, whether on or off the pitch. Ashley’s discredited regime drifts on, without a long-term strategy. On Saturday, the Newcastle owner spoke and sat close to Barry Moat, whose bid to buy the club has ground on, but that story has become a saga.

A narrow, uneasy victory over a neat and unfortunate Doncaster Rovers — during which Ashley was pilloried and Marlon Harewood, the forward, jeered — could be ascribed to one of two things; either rank good fortune or the unity that the players have nurtured. Or possibly both.

Having gone behind to a goal by Dean Shiels, restored parity through Andy Carroll, seen Rovers miss a penalty and had Zurab Khizanishvili, the centre back, dismissed for violent conduct, Kevin Nolan must have felt like he had turned up four aces when he scored the winner in stoppage time.

“Whatever we do, we do it together,” Nolan, the midfield player, said. “We’re only talking about £10 poker nights, there’s nothing extravagant.

“There are no sharks! Just ten or 12 lads getting around a table together, having a giggle. If we stick together and keep showing the character we have done, we’ll keep getting the results. It’s a massive part of trying to get back to where this club belongs.”

Hughton is rarely expressive, but he admitted that his confirmation as manager is imminent. “I expect it to be done in days,” he said.

“This club gets under your skin massively. I know there will be a little bit more pressure when I become full-time manager, but it will be an incredibly proud moment for me.”

Newcastle United (4-4-2): S Harper — R Taylor, Z Khizanishvili, T Kadar, J Enrique — D Guthrie, K Nolan, N Butt, J Gutiérrez (sub: B Tozer, 88min) — M Harewood (sub: N Ranger, 68), A Carroll. Substitutes not used: Gérémi, T Krul, W Ngo Beheng, R Donaldson. Booked: Butt, Harewood, Nolan. Sent off: Khizanishvili.

Doncaster Rovers (4-5-1): N Sullivan — J O’Connor, S Hird, J Shackell, J Chambers — J Coppinger (sub: J Hayter, 77), M Woods, S Gillett (sub: J Oster, 66), Q Fortune, D Shiels — B Sharp (sub: L Guy, 86). Substitutes not used: J Spicer, M Dumbuya, P Heffernan, G Woods. Booked: Shiels, O’Connor, Chambers, Sharp.

Referee: D Deadman. Attendance: 43,949.