Isaac Hayden admits that Newcastle United were "played off the park" by Brighton in the first half on Saturday night.
But insists that the club are still in a stable position after six matches given the politics that have unfolded at St James' Park in recent times.
Hayden's solidity in midfield helped snare a point from a game that resulted in the team being booed off.
He said: "With all due respect I think they played us off the park in the first half.
"We didn’t quite get it right, but in the second half we came out with a lot of spirit and courage and could have nicked it.
"They’ve changed their style a lot – it's a lot more possession based.
"They caught us out in the first half and we changed things a bit.
"We had a bit more of the ball in the second half.
"Allan Saint-Maximin and Andy Carroll lifted the crowd and changed the game."
Speaking to Sky Sports, Hayden feels that the players have still performed well to churn out five points from six matches.
He said: "We haven't fared badly, considering everything that’s happened.
"There have been a lot of changes at the football club.
"There’s a lot of things going on behind the scenes.
"As players, we’ve done our job and done as best we can."
United players were taken aback by the arrival of Andy Carroll with no survivors in the squad from his last appearance for the club away to Spurs in 2010.
Hayden added: "On his day, I don't think there’s many better than him.
"It’s just about getting him fit.
"He did very well when he came on.
"Hopefully we can get him firing."
But Hayden and his team-mates reserved most of their gratitude for Fabian Schar after his overhead clearance prevented Aaron Connolly nicking a win for the Seagulls.
He said: "We’ve had a couple of those down the years.
"It’s a close one but one that we’re thankful for."
Meanwhile, Steve Bruce admitted that Brighton had made life difficult for the Magpies for long spells.
He said: "We found it very difficult.
"We knew Brighton would come and want to take the football and basically we couldn't get after it well enough.
"In the second half we changed a few things and if anyone was going to win the game I thought it would be us.
"The Achilles heel is that we have to take big chances when we get them.
"We couldn't wait to get them in at half time.
"We didn't deal with Brighton who kept the ball very well and they made it a difficult evening for us.
"We got away with one."
