And, to make matters worse for Blues, Hugo Viana scored what proved to be the eventual winner from the resulting free-kick in the 42nd-minute.
"The frustrating thing is the linesman, who's 10 yards away doesn't do a thing, he doesn't wave, he doesn't flag, he doesn't do anything, and Mr Elleray gives the decision from 50 yards away," Bruce said after the game.
"He sends somebody off and there are 55,000 people here today watching a game of football and it just spoils the occasion, it spoils the whole game.
"I thought it was more clumsy than anything else. He (Bellamy) looked to me as if he was running away from goal not towards goal, so there's all sorts of debates and questions.
"It's Mr Elleray's last game. I'll say no more."
NEWCASTLE MATCH REPORT