PETER Lovenkrands has hailed Newcastle's strong team spirit as one of the key factors behind their early-season success, and claimed he was never worried about an adverse reaction to the loss of the likes of Kevin Nolan and Joey Barton this summer.

Last season, Nolan and Barton were part of a core of senior players who exerted a major influence in the St James' Park dressing room and helped ensure the togetherness that was established during a season in the Championship was maintained following promotion to the Premier League.

When the pair left in the close season, along with the equally-influential Jose Enrique, it was feared Newcastle would lose the bond that had held them together under first Chris Hughton and then his successor, Alan Pardew.

That fear was heightened when Pardew recruited predominantly foreign players to replace his outgoing stars, but two months into the season, and it has been shown to be wholly unjustified.

If anything, the current Newcastle squad appears more unified than ever, with their shared strength of purpose having contributed to a nine-game unbeaten run.

"A lot of people were saying that when they (Nolan and Barton) left, it was going to be a problem," said Lovenkrands. "But with the people we'd brought in and the people we already had in the dressing room as well, I knew we had plenty of characters here.

"We'd got plenty of people to take over from the people who had left. Sometimes, of course, those people were good for the team to have in, but it's helped as well getting new people in.

"The new boys have adapted so well. They're great boys, a great bunch of lads. They're really nice. We have a great off-the-pitch spirit and I think that also has something to do with the way we play on the pitch as well."

A cynic could claim that it is easy to have a good team spirit when you are winning football matches, and it is true that Newcastle's newly-developed camaraderie is yet to be tested by a series of setbacks.

They could come soon, as the club's unbeaten start is unlikely to survive an eight-week spell that sees them take on Tottenham, Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea before December 4.

Nevertheless, the departure of a number of big egos in the summer has undoubtedly given the Newcastle dressing room a more balanced look, and the potential for crisis within the current squad is diminished from where it was this time last year.

The squad also appears deeper, with Pardew's summer additions having created intense competition in a number of areas.

Concerns still exist, most notably at centre-half, where an injury to either Fabricio Coloccini or Steven Taylor would create problems, and at centre-forward, where FC Twente striker Luuk de Jong has become the latest player to be added to Newcastle's scouting list ahead of the January transfer window, but the strength of the Magpies' substitutes' bench in recent weeks highlights the variety of options available.

"We've got so many players waiting to play now," said Lovenkrands, whose own Premier League involvement has been limited to one start and two substitute appearances despite his Carling Cup double against Nottingham Forest. "We've shown that in the League Cup with players coming in who have not played much in the Premier League to do a job there.

"People know there are players wanting their places, so they have to give 100 per cent every time or people will come and take their space. I think that shows with the way the boys are playing, they're doing fantastic."

One player who has made a particularly favourable impression thus far is Yohan Cabaye, and with that in mind, there would have been a number of sighs of relief among the Newcastle hierarchy this weekend after the midfielder's injury, sustained while representing France on Friday evening, proved less serious than feared.

Cabaye injured his ankle in the second half of France's win over Albania, but with scans having shown no ligament damage, the former Lille playmaker is hoping to start tomorrow's decisive qualifier with Bosnia.

"I hope I will be fit for Tuesday and that this game does not pass me by," said Cabaye. "My left ankle got stamped on. I didn't want to take the risk and came off. I don't know whether it's a sprain or a bad bruise, but it was very painful and I couldn't carry on like that."