SUNDERLAND midfielder Carl Robinson reckons Newcastle United bad boy Craig Bellamy should be judged on the pitch rather than off it.

Bellamy was shipped out on loan to Celtic - following a much- publicised spat with his United boss Graeme Souness - during the January transfer window after turning down a £6m move to Birmingham City.

The 25-year-old striker agreed to the loan in the belief that Souness would be sacked in the summer, paving a way for his return to St James' Park.

The prodigal's reinstatement looks unlikely while the Scot is still in charge, and especially as the Magpies have lost only one in 13 games since Bellamy's departure.

Bellamy, meanwhile, has been a revelation since his move to Glasgow, scoring six goals in seven games, and only last week manager Martin O'Neill insisted he wanted to keep the Welshman at Celtic Park.

Robinson, who was on Wales duty with Bellamy this week ahead of this afternoon's World Cup qualifier against Austria at the Millennium Stadium, said: "Craig is a good lad and he's a fantastic player.

"His ability has never been in question. Sometimes he says things people will not agree with. He's very opinionated but that is Craig Bellamy.

"What happens off the field is down to Craig but I think he should be judged on what he does on the football field. There aren't many better centre forwards than him when he is on form.

"For Wales he has been fantastic and he's such a young lad. He's only 25. The amount of things he has done in the game - and he's been out injured for two or three years through injury - is fantastic."

While Bellamy's off-the-field antics seem to have gathered more interest and tabloid column inches than his outstanding football ability, Robinson was quick to point out that there is another side to him away from sporting arena which the public rarely sees or hears about.

He added: "He helps the younger lads when we're away (on international duty). I'm classed as one of the senior lads but he still talks to me and helps me. People don't see that side of Craig Bellamy.

"He also does a lot of work for charity and visits hospitals as well. People don't hear that. They want to read about Craig in a nightclub but that is maybe one night a month if he goes out. I have no problems with him. He is a good friend of mine.

"Craig is a winner. He wants to win things. When he steps over that white line he'll argue with his team-mates because he wants to win, and I have no problems with that as a player.

"I think Craig does it to his opponents to get them to lose their concentration, and get them riled, and then he takes his chance. I think he's very good at it. If you're playing against him it's annoying. Some people think football shouldn't be played like that but you don't see what goes on on the pitch for 90 minutes. But he wants to win at all costs."

Robinson says he does not know what happened between Bellamy and Souness during their time together at Newcastle, but revealed former Wales boss Mark Hughes seemed to get the best out of the fiery forward when he was in charge of the national side.

"Sparky was brilliant with him, and understood him," said Robinson. "They had long chats and I think he was able to control him. No one knows the ins and outs of what happened at Newcastle, but some managers like it and some don't.

"Obviously Sparky did know how to handle him and Graeme Souness didn't want to handle him or didn't know how to. Graeme obviously felt it was best for the club and eight games down the line he has pulled in eight brilliant results."

* New Wales captain Ryan Giggs has insisted he has no intention of retiring from international football.

Doubts over the Manchester United star's continued involvement for his country surfaced when seven of his senior colleagues quit in the wake of Mark Hughes' departure as boss.

But the midfielder said: ''I'm fit, I enjoy playing for my country and I have no intention of quitting.''

Giggs admitted earlier in the year he even discussed the situation with club boss Sir Alex Ferguson, and the 31-year-old's long friendship with Hughes could easily have been seen as an excuse not to work under new manager John Toshack, a constant critic of the previous regime in his TV pundit days.

Giggs reached the landmark 50th cap in the World Cup clash against Austria in Cardiff and admitted he still has ambitions.

He said: "If I stay fit for the next three or four years I do not see any reason - if I am still happy and playing international football - to think about retiring.

''It is an honour to play for your country. I want to get as many caps as I can. My goal is still obvious - to qualify for a major tournament.

"It is what every player wants. I will keep trying. I have two, maybe three campaigns left in me and hopefully I can do it."