NEWCASTLE stood toe-to-toe in a heavyweight contest and slugged it out with the side Sir Bobby Robson rates as the greatest he has seen on these shores in his 71 years.

In an absorbing encounter at St. James' Park, Arsenal had to be satisfied with a draw that extends their lead over Chelsea in the Premiership title race to seven points, and their record-breaking unbeaten League run to 32 games with six to go.

The finish line is in sight, but Arsene Wenger's men won't have many tougher tests this season than they did here.

United's eight-match winning home run may have come to an end, but it was a gallant effort from Robson's side and only their second clean sheet in 17 games in all competitions.

Newcastle skipper Alan Shearer had delivered his own pre-match salute to the Gunners, acknowledging that they are currently out on their own in the British game.

Just for good measure, centre-back Jonathan Woodgate hailed Thierry Henry as the finest player in the world in the build-up to their head-to-head.

But for all the buttering up, Newcastle were a match for the visitors and Woodgate enhanced his claims to a place in Sven-Goran Eriksson's England squad for Euro 2004 with another accomplished display.

Henry, defying a chronic lower back problem, still went close to adding to his 25-goal Premiership haul this season.

Yet both he and co-striker Jose Antonio Reyes looked to be offside by the proverbial country mile when Henry was allowed to go in the 63rd minute.

And only the angle defeated the Frenchman after he had gone round goalkeeper Shay Given and clipped the near post with his finish.

Reyes also passed up a great chance in the 76th minute when Henry crossed from the right and the Spanish prodigy's free header bounced off Given from point-blank range.

The draw sees United go level on points with Liverpool, whose goal difference is one better, in the battle for the coveted fourth place and a Champions League berth.

With the stakes so high, there was predictably no lack of urgency about the early exchanges yesterday and, to the delight of the vocal home crowd, it was Newcastle who instantly seized the initiative.

Gary Speed was prompting and probing from the start and twice succeeded in opening up the Arsenal defence inside the first six minutes.

First he threaded a perceptive through-ball into the path of Wales teammate Craig Bellamy, whose tame finish failed to cause keeper Jens Lehmann any undue trouble.

But when Speed whipped a wonderful ball out to Shearer on the right two minutes later, Lehmann had to be at his best to produce a superb one-handed save after Bellamy had met his captain's low cross with an impudent near-post flick.

Arsenal, with skipper Patrick Vieira passed fit and Sylvain Wiltord making his first League start since being claimed by injury in October, were slow to show.

When Reyes cut in from the right to set up Henry on the edge of the area, he opted for placement rather than power and his right-foot effort was always going wide.

Jermaine Jenas, engaging Vieira in a keen midfield tussle, found room to present the prominent Speed with a shooting chance in the 31st minute, but the 20-yard drive drifted beyond Lehmann's right-hand post.

It signalled the start of Arsenal's best spell of the opening period. Reyes' persistence almost paid off when he lifted the ball into the middle for Edu, but Olivier Bernard was alive to the danger and made a timely intervention in front of goal.

Vieira then clearly made a meal of a shoulder-to-shoulder challenge with Andy O'Brien - recalled by Robson in central defence for Titus Bramble - when he went to ground in the penalty area.

But Arsenal maintained the pressure and when Reyes received a return ball from Edu, the Spaniard would have been disappointed with a shot which ran well wide of the far post.

There was another anxious moment for Newcastle in the 37th minute as Henry ghosted past the defence to go wide before pulling his left-foot shot wide of the same upright.

But the Magpies made problems for themselves on the stroke of half-time when Bellamy put Jenas under pressure with a short header and the midfielder underhit a backpass which was intercepted by Wiltord.

Luckily for the home side, however, the Frenchman failed to connect cleanly with the ball and it trundled narrowly wide of Given's seemingly charmed left-hand post.

Speed, having a major influence on the game, carried on in the same vein at the start of the second half when he broke up the beginnings of an Arsenal move.

The ball was then worked to Darren Ambrose, but when Shearer flicked on, the off-balance Bellamy miskicked and an admittedly difficult chance had gone.

Laurent Robert forced a low save from Lehmann with a raking 30-yard free-kick, before Vieira broke down the left touchline to spread panic in the United defence.

When he played the ball inside, Reyes left Woodgate in his wake as he darted into the box, but O'Brien did enough to put the striker off and Given came out to gather at his feet.

Two minutes after hitting the woodwork, Henry emerged on the right to pick out Vieira in the middle, but Jenas appeared from nowhere with an oustretched leg to reach the ball first.

As play ebbed and flowed, Newcastle pressed again and Bellamy conjured a cunning ball for Bernard, whose shot crashed into the side-netting.

After Given had foiled Reyes, Henry somehow sprang back to his feet having gone down under a challenge, to unleash a fierce right-foot drive that skewed wide of the far post.

Vieira was then booked for a crude challenge on substitute Lee Bowyer before referee Paul Durkin, who had an excellent game, had to step in to sort out a dispute between the eccentric Lehmann and Shearer, with the keeper claiming he was being impeded as he attempted to clear.

There was one last chance for Arsenal, but centre-back Kolo Toure glanced a free header wide on the end of substitute Robert Pires' right-wing corner