NEWPORT County AFC had to settle for a point against Morecambe as the visitors cancelled out Ben Tozer's first-half opener with a penalty from Michael Rose 13 minutes from time. Here's what we learned...
1. Second half struggles caught up with County
Michael Flynn’s men led 1-0 at half-time and looked to be in charge but once again they suffered a second-half dip, which allowed their opponents a way back into the game.
They got away with it on Friday against Crawley, hanging on to win 2-1, but last night Morecambe took advantage to level from the spot and could easily have stolen all three points late on.
2. Clean sheets hard to come by right now
Goalkeeper Joe Day had spoken of his desire to record a clean sheet after four successive 2-1 wins but it wasn’t to be as he brought down Garry Thompson in the box and was beaten from the spot by Michael Rose.
The Exiles have not shut out the opposition since the 0-0 draw with Lincoln City on December 23. Day will hope that the clean sheet finally arrives against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday or, perhaps more realistically, when they take on Lincoln again next Tuesday.
Deserved more than a point tonight .. 10 points out of 12 .. Big game on Saturday at Rodney Parade⚽️ We go again! #AmberArmy 🔶
— Shawn McCoulsky (@SMccoulsky) January 23, 2018
3. The Exiles will have to be more ruthless against Spurs
It seems that County need to score at least two goals to win at the moment and they were simply not clinical enough to claim all three points last night.
Substitute Shawn McCoulsky was only denied by a stunning save in the final minute of the match but the players will be well aware that they will have to take every chance that comes along if they are to have a chance of causing a major cup upset on Saturday.
A point tonight not what we wanted but some positives still to take from tonight🙌🏾 Great to make my debut for @NewportCounty tonight and look forward to Saturday 🙌🏾🙏🏾
— EOsadebe (@EmmanuelOsadeb4) January 23, 2018
4. Osadebe could be ideal deputy for Labadie
The new loan signing from Cambridge United replaced Josh Sheehan at half-time and initially impressed in his willingness to get stuck in and push forward to support the front three.
His lack of game-time was evident towards the end of the match but Osadebe showed enough to suggest that he could be the man to fill in for Labadie when the skipper is unavailable.
5. But the skipper is going nowhere
The rumours were swirling around social media and on the terraces at Rodney Parade before the game that Joss Labadie was on his way to Forest Green Rovers for as much as £500,000.
But manager Michael Flynn was quick to dismiss that when asked about his captain after the game, insisting that Labadie will remain at the club until at least the end of the season.
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