TWO late goals from Tyrese Campbell, the teenage son of former Arsenal and Everton striker Kevin, earned Stoke City under-23s a 3-1 victory over Newport County AFC at Rodney Parade.
It wasn’t the way that County wanted to conclude their pre-season preparations but Michael Flynn will have been pleased with his side’s performance in the first 30 minutes of each half.
The Exiles boss took the opportunity to look at a trialist in goal but he had little to do in the opening half hour as the back three of Fraser Franks, Scot Bennett and Mickey Demetriou kept the young Potters quiet.
Tyler Forbes and Dan Butler continued on the flanks with Andrew Crofts, Matty Dolan and Charlie Cooper in midfield and Padraig Amond and Antoine Semenyo, who both scored at Edgar Street, up front.
County were on top in the opening stages as Dolan dragged a shot wide early on and struck a free-kick straight at Stoke goalkeeper Daniel Gyollai before Amond lofted a shot onto the top of the net.
The visitors came to life in the final 15 minutes of the first half with Belgian Thibaud Verlinden showing some great footwork on the edge of the area before blasting his shot wide.
Daniel Jarvis then broke the deadlock on 35 minutes with a close-range shot that wrong-footed the trialist goalkeeper and may have taken a deflection on the way into the net.
Julien Ngoy, another Belgian, then curled a shot straight at the goalkeeper and County were fortunate when the forward slipped in the area just as he was about to unleash another shot.
Flynn made five changes for the second half with David Pipe, Mark O’Brien, Josh Sheehan, Keanu Marsh-Brown and Jamille Matt.
Forbes, Bennett, Franks, Cooper and Semenyo made way as County switched to a back four and went on the offensive.
Amond and Matt went close with headers from corners before the Irishman deservedly levelled on 51 minutes.
Marsh-Brown made good ground down the right flank and his cross found the overlapping Butler on the left.
Butler returned the ball and Matt cleverly ducked under it, allowing the on-rushing Amond to head home from close range.
Dolan saw a free-kick pushed away from the top corner by Gyollai after Matt was brought down as he bore down on goal.
Captain Crofts was then applauded off midway through the second half as he was replaced by Trialist 2, otherwise known as Tyreeq Bakinson.
The midfielder’s loan move from Bristol City is expected to be confirmed by County on Monday and he again showed his potential with another promising cameo alongside Sheehan and Dolan.
The match looked to be heading for a draw before Campbell showed the type of form that saw him force his way into the Potters’ Premier League squad last season.
The 18-year-old rifled a shot into the bottom corner from 25 yards on 78 minutes and added his second two minutes later with a shot from the edge of the area that squirmed underneath the goalkeeper.
Campbell almost curled in for his hat-trick after a torrential downpour and at the other end Marsh-Brown twice went close to grabbing a consolation – hitting the bar with two minutes remaining – but the visitors took the spoils.
County: Trialist 1; Franks (Pipe, 46) Bennett (O’Brien, 46), Demetriou (Foulston, 79); Forbes (Sheehan, 46), Crofts (Trialist 2, 67), Cooper (Marsh-Brown, 46) Butler (Trialist 3, 72); Dolan; Semenyo (Matt, 46), Amond
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