SOME poor defending from set-pieces saw the Exiles comprehensively beaten on the road for the second time in a week.

The Cobblers raced into a two goal advantage with identical goals from corners and County simply couldn’t recover from another poor start, just like a week ago at Cambridge.

Edinburgh had the benefit of a midweek friendly to attempt to get the Cambridge result out of their systems and he rung the changes, even ditching his favoured 5-3-2 formation.

The Exiles have had mixed success when they’ve adopted different systems but he adopted a 3-4-3 formation for the trip to Sixfields and saw it backfire spectacularly in a one-sided first half.

Northampton were quicker to everything in the first period, winning all the second balls and ensuring County’s tandem of Mark Byrne and Adam Chapman were unable to impose themselves as the Cobblers came at them with wave after wave of attacks.

They might have led as early as the first minute when Ricky Holmes found space on the right, but his shot clipped the heel of Andy Sandell and went wide with Joe Day struggling to get down to his near post. It was the first of two warning shots, because from Joel Byrom’s resulting corner, defender Ryan Cresswell saw his shot brilliantly tipped onto the crossbar by Day.

It was a massive let-off for the Exiles and underlined the danger of the Cobblers at set-pieces, but Newport comprehensively failed to heed the warning and capitulated under further Cobblers pressure.

First Cresswell got his goal, beating Kevin Feely to the ball from another Byrom corner as County failed to do the basics when marking at a corner. And it wouldn’t be the last time.

The Exiles had already been fooled twice but completed the treble, the Cobblers marching 2-0 ahead from their third corner of the day as Byrom again found the perfect centre, allowing John-Joe O’Toole to head home as Day appealed in vain for an infringement.

County were almost out of sight and deservedly so and they only offered long-range efforts in response, Mark Byrne forcing Matt Duke to save and Chris Zebroski firing over as the Exiles battled in vain for a route back into the contest.

Surprisingly they made no changes at the break as the hosts again looked the more threatening side, but County would have been kicking themselves when they did create an opening just prior to the hour, Zebroski flicking-on a long throw, but Shaun Jeffers could only head over from six yards out.

The Exiles were far more robust and compact in the second period – with the damage arguably done – but they never really looked likely to find the scoring opportunities they craved.

The hosts were content to sit and contain and did so expertly, County full of huff and puff but lacking in penetration, Kevin Feely’s speculative volley the only time they truly tested Matt Duke.

And it was little surprise that with County trying to pour forward they were caught on the break, Lawson D’Ath producing a fine run and finish to add gloss to the scoreline.