What the press made of the ten-men earning a gallant point
The Chronicle
Battling Crewe Alex ground out an unlikely point after playing with 10 men for 74 minutes of their clash with Newport County at Gresty Road on Saturday.
Things looked bleak for the Railwaymen when they found themselves trailing to a Frank Nouble goal and Perry Ng had been sent off by the 16-minute mark.
But they showed real spirit and resolve to get back into it through a Chris Dagnall strike, and fought hard for the rest of the game to earn a share of the spoils.
They actually had chances to win it, with Chris Porter hitting a post in first-half stoppage time.
However, manager David Artell will likely be satisfied with a second home draw in eight days under the circumstances.
South Wales Argus
MICHAEL Flynn returned to the scene of his first match in charge of Newport County AFC but there was no late winner this time at Crewe Alexandra.
If last week’s 3-3 thriller at Stevenage felt like a win for County, this 1-1 draw against 10 men at Gresty Road left the Exiles with plenty of regrets.
Joss Labadie, scorer of the 88th-minute winner as the Great Escape began here in March, was one of four men recalled by Flynn.
Following a bright start at a sunny Gresty Road, County were ahead in the 13th minute as Nouble tapped in after Labadie and White had both seen goal-bound efforts blocked.
If that wasn’t enough to put the Exiles in charge, the red card shown to Crewe defender Perry Ng for a second booking four minutes later gave Flynn’s men another huge boost.
But the 10 men were level within a minute as George Cooper ran at the County defence and crossed for Chris Dagnall to slot in from close range.
And, despite White and Willmott going close, it was the hosts who looked more likely to add to the score before the break.
White should have scored with a volley from six yards out but he failed to connect properly and Crewe goalkeeper Ben Garratt saved.
But Cooper was causing all sorts of problems down the right.
He cut inside and curled a shot over Joe Day’s bar before creating what should have been Crewe’s second goal in the first minute of stoppage time.
Cooper swept the ball across goal and Chris Porter only had to side-foot home but his shot was scuffed and the ball was diverted onto the post by White before the youngster cleared the danger.
The sending off certainly seemed to fire up the hosts in the first half but County made much better use of their numerical advantage in the second period.
Wales Online
Newport County had to settle for a point against 10-man Crewe Alexandra after an action-packed encounter at Gresty Road.
Frank Nouble gave the visitors the perfect start as he slotted in the rebound after Crewe goalkeeper Ben Garratt had saved Shawn McCoulsky’s effort in the 13th minute.
And it got even better for Michael Flynn’s men four minutes later when home defender Perry Ng was sent off for a second booking.
But the hosts made light of their numerical disadvantage by levelling inside a minute and dominating the remainder of the first half.
George Cooper was the star man for Crewe and he crossed for Chris Dagnall to equalize in the 18th minute.
Cooper almost created a second for the hosts in first half stoppage-time as he again crossed from the right but Chris Porter’s shot was deflected onto the post and cleared by County defender Ben White.
Substitute Lamar Reynolds twice went close to finding a winner for Newport after the break.
The 21-year-old striker saw his first shot deflected inches wide before a late header was cleared off the line by home defender Eddie Nolan.
And, despite constant pressure, Michael Flynn’s men couldn’t find a winner in the closing stages at Gresty Road.