WHILE the Premiership's power-brokers have been falling over themselves to promote English football's attacking merits this month, Steven Taylor last night claimed Newcastle's new-found defensive strength was at the root of their recent revival.

Saturday's goalless draw at Portsmouth was hardly the best advert for the thrills and spills of the English game but, despite their cherished reputation for entertainment, the homegrown centre-half feels the Magpies have no need to apologise for their recent miserliness.

Last weekend's clean sheet was United's third Premiership shut-out in succession -the first time the club have recorded such a run for two-and-a-half years - and, after failing to pick up a point in the first four games of the season, Graeme Souness' side now find themselves comfortably clear of the bottom three.

Scoring at the other end remains a problem - especially in the enforced absence of Michael Owen - but the unforced errors that have plagued Newcastle in the past seem to have finally disappeared.

"We feel that we are not giving stupid goals away these days," said Taylor, who is expected to feature for England Under-21s when they face their Austrian counterparts at Elland Road on Friday night.

"If someone makes a mistake now, there tends to be someone covering and that helps a great deal.

"It gives us all confidence. We didn't have that last season and that's the reason we finished so far down the table. We have been working very hard on keeping clean sheets and it has paid off.

"The point we got at Portsmouth was very important. We stuck at it and got our reward. The clean sheet was magnificent.

"The performance showed the work ethic we have throughout the side and, from front to back, our work rate and resilience was fantastic. It is a part of our game that hasn't always been so good."

Nevertheless, things would have been very different at Fratton Park had it not been for a dazzling display from goalkeeper Shay Given.

The Irish international was in inspired form on the south coast, with one particularly eye-catching stop from Matthew Taylor already a contender for the Premiership's save of the season.

Yet, while Given's superb show of shot-stopping won the praise of his Pompey opponents, it was no surprise at all to his Newcastle team-mates.

"Shay was absolutely fantastic," said Taylor. "But his performances don't shock us now - we are used to them. We see him make those saves week in, week out in training and in matches.

"He made some fantastic saves at the weekend and most of the credit for the clean sheet has to go to him.

"Playing with him gives us great confidence. In an ideal world, he would not have to make any saves. It would be good if he was never tested.

"But we know that, if someone gets past us and is facing Shay, they still have a lot to do to put the ball in the net. Just having him behind us makes us all feel better. He is an excellent keeper."

While Given's place in Newcastle's first team has never been in doubt, Taylor was expected to spend much of his time on the bench despite breaking into the senior ranks last season.

Instead, the 19-year-old has missed just one game as Titus Bramble's recurring injury problems and Steven Carr's emergency midfield role have left Souness short of numbers at the back.

"I didn't expect to play as many games as I have done," he admitted. "At the start of the season, I was thinking that, if an injury came along, I would be in there. That is what has happened with Titus.

"It gave me a massive boost to get into the team and the confidence of the players around me has helped so much.

"I'll do whatever I can to keep my place. I know that, whenever I play, I have to perform. The manager wants winners and he wants people who are playing well."

l Injury-hit midfielder Emre has joined up with the Turkey squad ahead of next week's crucial World Cup qualifier in Albania.

The 25-year-old, who has missed six Premiership games this season because of hamstring problems, remains hopeful of figuring in Tirana.