The Australian's gruelling summer on duty with his national side at the Asian Cup in the Far East and a succession of injuries have limited him to just eight starts for his new club to date.

However, the 32-year-old is desperate to rediscover the sort of form which brought him 19 goals in his final season at Middlesbrough on a consistent basis, with the Magpies in need of a boost.

He said: "I want to get as many goals as I can under my belt. With every game, you get fitter and fitter, so hopefully it should not be too long.

"I'm very happy to be training and playing as normal. It has been stop-start.

"I had a pretty long summer with the national team - I was away for a long time and I came back here and I didn't really do a proper pre-season with the team.

"It's good to get it behind me and be able to concentrate on some games coming up and just to be involved in the squad.

"I was happy with my form last season and I was looking - and still am looking - to keep on going from there."