NEWPORT County manager Graham Coughlan has expressed a desire to hold more training sessions for his squad at Rodney Parade in order to fix the team’s recent poor home form.

The Exiles loss to Harrogate on Tuesday means that they will have picked up more points on the road than on home soil for the second season in a row.

The team currently trains near Spytty Park, where the club used to play from 1994 up until their move to Rodney Parade in 2012.

“We probably come here twice a month and that’s us,” said County boss Coughlan.

“I would love to do our shape, set piece, and patterns of play sessions maybe the day before the home game and just spend a bit more time here getting used to our environment.”

The club’s ground staff recently won the ELF Grounds Team of the 2022/2023 season for the second time running, having previously won the 2021/2022 award for their work on the playing surface at Rodney Parade.

The achievements of the club's ground staff are a far cry from just a few years ago, when the Exiles were forced to play two of their league games at the home of nearby rivals Cardiff City due to the poor playing conditions of their home pitch during the 2020/2021 season.

But since the completion of redevelopment work on the hybrid pitch at Rodney Parade in August 2021, the playing surface has been transformed into one of the best in League Two. Which is even more remarkable when you consider that County also share the pitch with the Dragons.

“It’s a wonderful pitch and if we can get a training session once a week or even twice a month that would help us immensely,” said Coughlan.

“It would also help the mindset and mentality and give us back the home advantage that would certainly swing in our favour.”

This season has seen the Exiles struggle to rekindle their home form from seasons past, with the South Wales side only managing a measly six wins out of 22 games played so far.

Graham Coughlan’s men will have the chance to end their miserable home form with a win on the final day against Crewe at Rodney Parade. Before a busy summer which will hopefully see the Exiles play a few more pre-season friendlies at home.

“Maybe if we could get another pre-season game or two over the course of July during pre-season as well.

“I’d like to spend more time here and just get a feel for the space. So, it would be nice to see if we could open up a dialogue about making that possible.”