NEWPORT County AFC suffered a 2-1 defeat to Stockport County at Rodney Parade after being hit by a second half comeback.

The Exiles went down for the first time in League Two under Graham Coughlan and are 19th in the table, four points ahead of the relegation zone.

They went into the lead on the stroke of half-time thanks to Aaron Lewis sliding in to finish from close range but the visitors took the spoils thanks to strikes by Chris Hussey and Paddy Madden.

Here are some talking points from Newport…

TOP HATTERS

This was the first speedbump of the Coughlan era and they got what they deserved from the game.

Firstly, credit must go to Stockport because they posed plenty of problems with their fluid shape and neat football.

The Hatters, with Madden a standout player, would have wondered how they were trailing at the break but showed character for a comeback win.

They started the season poorly but the National League champions have since shown their quality; with 13 points from their last five games they look likely to be at least play-off contenders.

Meanwhile, Newport County are still searching for the right balance under the new boss, who has made them more solid at the back but has work to do at the other end.

They have gone back to basics in defence and have been direct in attack, going long and thriving from long throws and set plays.

Many County fans wanted pragmatism when calling for the head of James Rowberry and that is what they have got in the early days of the Coughlan reign.

It’s worked with wins against Colchester and draws that could easily have been successes at Mansfield and Northampton.

What will disappoint the boss is that they took the lead against Stockport with a moment of quality from Omar Bogle to set up Lewis but then failed to finish the job.

County made Leicester produce quality moments for a 3-0 win in the Carabao Cup but the Hatters’ goals were soft. A reaction is needed against Gillingham.

STOP THE CROSS

County have conceded six goals under Coughlan and Stockport’s two would have frustrated the manager.

The first was a mistake by Joe Day, who was deceived by Hussey’s free-kick to allow the cross to drift in at the far post.

The error means the goalkeeper will be feeling the heat from Nick Townsend, who produced some fine stops in Leicester.

The second came from Macauley Southam-Hales being able to whip in a terrific ball, with the former Cardiff City youngster getting a yard on Aaron Lewis and ensuring the defender’s despairing block was just too late.

Sam Hoskins’ goal at Northampton came from a cross and so did Vardy’s first in Leicester. County need to be better at stopping the delivery rather than relying on dealing with cross in the box.

MIDFIELD BYPASS

There has been some online finger-pointing at the midfield and that might well be an area of the team that Coughlan looks to target in January.

However, the trio of Scot Bennett, Nathan Moriah-Welsh and James Waite have a nice balance on paper and at the moment the pragmatic approach is leading to them being bypassed.

With Aaron Wildig out with a back strain, there aren’t really any players screaming to be included and perhaps a week of rest will help the trio to go again versus Gillingham after the manager suggested his players were leggy.

South Wales Argus:

MAN IN THE MIDDLE

I try to avoid slamming referees, they have a hard job and there are usually other bigger reasons for defeat than the officiating.

That was the case on Saturday but Coughlan was livid at the performance of Andy Woolmer, feeling that the Hussey free-kick was awarded for a fair tackle by Bogle and then being left perplexed by a bizarre incident at 1-1.

Ryan Croasdale picked the ball up on the edge of the area and claimed he had heard a whistle, feeling that a teammate had been fouled by Will Evans. The officials got together and opted to restart with a drop ball.

That is correct by the rules of the game for ‘outside interference’ but this felt like Stockport got away with one.

The incident added to the frustration of the afternoon but it was the errors at the other end that were the difference, not Mr Woolmer.