Southampton - 1 Newcastle - 2: "All of it," Graeme Souness joked when asked how much credit he can take for Newcastle's first away win in 11 months. Even he must know the points should be dedicated to Southampton's hapless head coach Steve Wigley.

This was Newcastle's first Premiership win away from St James' Park in 17 attempts and it coincided with Souness's first league game, but he is no miracle worker.

There was bold selection, with Patrick Kluivert acting as Alan Shearer's strike partner in a move that forced Craig Bellamy on to the right wing, and there was pretty football. But for all Newcastle's merits, there was little threat from the home side to fear.

Wigley's failure to spot a weakness in the visitors' central defence - where the 5ft 10in reserve-team left-back Robbie Elliott was asked to contend with the 6ft 1in James Beattie - was inexcusable.

Not until 70 minutes had passed did Wigley abandon the passing football that had simply been an adornment to a poor-quality match.

"We tried to pass the ball but I don't care what level you're playing at, even the World Cup, when you get to the last 20 minutes and you're a goal down, people tend to be a bit more direct," said Wigley by way of excuse, but he should rather have been apologising for his failure to exercise the tactic before.

Souness was forced to admit when the ball came over the heads of his defence, Newcastle's greatest problems were posed.

"In the second half, our backs were against the wall for long periods," said Souness. "It's a difficult type of football to play against, just launching it from anywhere about the park. It was a bit of a throwback to some years ago with certain teams."

Southampton's midfield is so poor Wigley should have consider bypassing it earlier. Jermaine Jenas silenced Fabrice Fernandes on Southampton's right and Bellamy's running kept Graeme le Saux pinned back, preventing him from overlapping on the left.

If there was another victory in Souness's contribution beyond the result, it was this.

"What we have to get at Newcastle is the same as what Arsenal and Manchester United have had for a number of years," said Souness. "It's the cause that's important. Some of the players will be asked to play not in their ideal position. Craig's preferred position is through the middle but we've had a chat last week and he understands."

Souness admitted, though, that he has yet to have that conversation with the troublesome Kieron Dyer, who refused to play wide right at Middlesbrough during the fag end of Bobby Robson's stewardship at St James' Park.

The Scot's role as disciplinarian is overplayed, but Dyer will know that Souness will be less tolerant of his caprices than his predecessor. The other departure from Robson's regime is the appreciation that goals will take care of themselves with the wealth of attacking riches at his disposal.

And so they did here. David Prutton was unfortunate to have turned the ball into his own net, but the goal was Newcastle's desert. Bellamy had switched wings for the first time in the match, running at the inexperienced home debutant Mikael Nilsson before sweeping his cross into the six-yard box.

Kluivert's elaborate but vain attempt to backheel into the net did at least distract Claus Lundekvam and the goalkeeper Antti Niemi, leaving Shearer free to slam his shot across goal, from where Prutton knocked it in.

That the goal featured all three strikers was a tribute to the Souness selection. Yet Shearer was simply making amends for an earlier blunder, when he headed wide from Lee Bowyer's corner when unmarked six yards out. Jenas failed even to make contact from a similar distance after Bellamy's run and cross had exposed the goal for him.

Yet it is at the other end that Newcastle must toil for a return. With Jonathan Woodgate gone, there is a yawning gap at centre-half that Elliott is not up to filling. Southampton were allowed back into the game when Prutton shot hard at an advancing defence, which Anders Svensson was able to scamper behind to latch on to the rebound.

Newcastle might have had an instant reply, though claims for handball after Kluivert's header struck Lundekvam on the arm were waved away.

It was left to Stephen Carr to conjure the most memorable moment of the match.

Receiving a free-kick from Jenas, the full-back's swerving shot from all of 35 yards was unstoppable.

It provided Souness with a second win of his short reign. But to put it in perspective, he is also, after defeat with Blackburn Rovers, the only manager to have lost to Southampton this season.