"QUALITY fans" and manager Tim Harris' ambition to get Newport County promotion to the Conference league have brought Bury FC defender Ryan Souter to Spytty Park on a two-year contract.

Harris sealed the deal with the 23-year-old centre-half yesterday ending Souter's two-and-a-half-year spell at Bury to bring him back to Newport.

Having spent much of last season in Bury's reserves, Souter played 15 games and scored twice for County during a three-month loan period at the end of 2000 and the young talent already knows the Newport squad, which he joins today for the Amber Army's golf competition.

Signed to Bury from Weston-Super-Mare for a deal worth £75,000, Souter is strong in the air and his aggressive nature will help tighten a County defence prone to concede goals.

He said: "The main two reasons to join were the high quality of the fans and Tim Harris' ambition to push for promotion.

"The fans at County are better than at Bury, they don't single out players for stick when things aren't going well and I like that. I enjoyed my time at Newport on loan and everything about the club is quality."