County dig in for a valuable point

Report from Mark Vickery
Venue: Moor Lane

Salford City 1 (Adelakun pen 31)
Newport County 1 (McLoughlin pen 11)

Attendance: 1,952
Match Rating: **


Form:
Newport County ddDdWLLLLL
Salford City WWWWWWWLLL


PRE-MATCH THOUGHTS
County need to put in more consistent performances over the 90+ minutes. Expect Salford to be direct and aggressive so key they match their work ethic before they start to think about playing too much football

CONDITIONS
Coudy and mild with light breeze. Pitch looked reasonable condition but cut up as game progressed

SUMMING UP OUR PERFORMANCE IN ONE STATEMENT
Put down a marker, battling but disciplined in adversity and kept nerve under pressure

TURNING POINT
Lost some momentum after Whitmore injury

THE MATCH
County made just the one change with Josh Martin replacing Kyle Hudlin who was on the bench. County retained their 4–2–3–1 formation with Ajiboye switching to a more central position and Martin taking his position right wing. The early stages were a fast tempo which set a precedence for the rest of the game. County were keen to get the ball wide quickly using Kamwa left side but were thwarted by a couple of offside decisions. On 5 minutes, Salford pressed high down their left side gambling to pressurise a kick from deep. Fornah challenged and caught Whitmore very late with a tackle from behind earning himself a booking. Salford probed away with some moves right side using Taylor as outlet to charge down and press but Davies cleared the danger effectively under pressure. The fouls continued to reign in with County having the upper hand in the middle and they worked some decent moves in transition. On 10 minutes County got their reward when McLoughlin initiated a quick low move right leaving Fornah static. The straight pass found Ajiboye who carried a strong inside near the “d” and he was cythed down by Tilt just inside the box to win a penalty. McLoughlin took the spot kick with a composed low finish. Salford upped the bar again persisting with some pressing in packs deep inside the County half. On 15 minutes, County were given a warning when Kieran Evans wanted the extra touch in the middle and with his back to goal Taylor stole the ball. His quick pass released Kouassi right corner of the box but the low shot was well blocked by McCoughlin. From the resulting corner left side the cross dropped deep with County slow to clear and Adelakun saw his low shot back saved by the alert Townsend. Salford continued push high and had another warning on 17 minutes when Whitmore fended off a challenge near the right flank by Birkoe. He carried a strong run right side of the area and cut back an excellent cross to Martin who fired a first time shot from 16 yards just over the bar. Salford continued to menace left side with Birkoe and Fornah working well in tandem to win some corners. On 25 minutes, Salford caught County napping taking a quick corner left side with Shepton and Kouassi combining with Ajiboye not tracking his man. The cross back post sat up invitingly for Lund but Townsend reacted well to parry the volley around the right post. County had a great chance to extend their lead on 27 minutes when a fast break saw Cameron Evans supply a neat pass right side for Ajiboye to latch onto. He drove forward and cut inside rounding the keeper and the ball fell to Kamwa. His first time effort was blocked by the keeper and the follow up from an acute angle was cleared off the line by Warrington. Salford elected to play direct using Kouassi as an outlet but County mopped up well in behind clearing effectively. Salford were back in the game on the half hour although there was an element of fortune when they broke right side with Shepherd overlapping from deep. Kieran Evans appeared to have the move covered and clearly played the ball but caught Shepherd who fell in a heap. The referee awarded a penalty despite protests and Adelakun slotted low in the right corner. Salford gained some confidence following their goal with some more patient moves and less aggression off the ball. On 35 minutes, another bright Salford move saw them switch play from right to left and Fornah unleashed an opportunist effort from 30 yards just past the corner of right post and bar. County kept their focus and shape well as half time approached despite being under more pressure but continued to ask questions in transition. On 42 minutes, County switched play well from the middle with Martin threading a pass left side to Ajiboye. He danced his way into area past Shepherd and had an opportunity to shoot but overran the ball allowing Tilt to clear. County had been on the end of several crude challenges first half and Whitmore was injured protecting the ball under pressure from Tilt who appeared to catch him with his outstretched arm. Despite attention Whitmore was forced off and replaced by Antwi.

The second half began with Salford having the territorial advantage but County maintained their focus to clear the danger. On 53 minutes, County had Cameron Evans booked for blocking a run left side by Adelakun. County were forced into some hopeful direct moves to relieve pressure but found less joy through the middle than out wide with Tilt mopping up aerial balls. On 57 minutes, County missed a tackle defending their right side and Fornah blasted well over the bar left corner of the box. Salford were keen to attack from deep getting their full backs on the ball. On 67 minutes, County were given a warning when Shepherd checked inside with run near the halfway line and Antwi got the wrong side and his late tackle saw him booked. Salford made a double substitution on 72 witn Kouassi replaced by Stockton and Taylor sacrificed for Longelo. He went left wing back and Shepherd right wing back as Salford switched to 343. On 74 minutes, another late aerial challenge by Salford saw Shepherd fortunate to escape a card when he caught Davies late. After receiving treatment Davies was forced off and replaced by Glennon. With County stifling Salford, frustration got the better of them on 77 minutes when a late tackle by Fornah caught Clarke late. Fornah received a second yellow and was sent off. Despite the handicap Salford kept probing away offering energy in transition. On 80 minutes, some indecision by County saw them lose a decent opportunity to break with Salford stretched. Martin misplaced his pass and was forced to recover and concede a free kick in a dangerous position near the edge of the area. Lund took the free kick but blasted a low effort from 20 yards into the wall and County cleared. Salford remained a threat right side with Shepherd carrying runs from deep. On 82 minutes, Shepherd crossed first time right side and Negru was left unmarked but glanced his header from 10 yards wide of the left post. County made a double substitution moments later to pep up their approach with Baker-Richardson replacing Ajiboye and Martin sacrificed for Mawene who came on for a cameo right side. Salford responded with another double substitution with Mnoga going left wing back for Birkoe and Watson replacing Warrington in midfield. Salford had a half chance on 87 minutes following a long throw right side of the area which was glanced on by Tilt. The ball sat up invitingly for Watson but he couldn’t keep his shot down from 12 yards. With Salford desperately over committing players forward, County were thwarted by a couple of smart moves on the break but Kamwa was flagged marginally offside. On 90+2 minutes, County had a great chance to pinch the game. This time the ball came through the middle rather than out wide with Kamwa chasing a direct ball. He outpaced Negru and raced into the box but delaying his shot saw him forced around the keeper but the shot came to nothing. In the 7 minutes of injury time, Salford forced County deep and had a glimmer of a chance on 90+5 minutes when Adelakun cut back as low pass right side of the area for Shepherd. He went for glory and struck a decent effort high and wide of the left post and bar. County held firm for a battling but well deserved point.


Townsend (7) — kicked and distributed well. Not overworked but made a couple of smart Instinctive saves handling well.
Baker (7) — kept focus and discipline well under pressure. Good leap winning some strong headers and got ball safe.
C Evans (6) — put under pressure with strong runs left side but cleared well in general. was well protected working well with McCloughlin.
McLoughlin (7) — did a lot of the unnoticed ugly work today which was important and had a good battle with Fornah.
Clarke (8) — begs question why he has been overlooked recently. Was resilient, lead defence superbly clearing pressure.
Davies (7) — decent game, gave balance and limited threat well squashing threat from Taylor runs and kept concentration well until being forced off.
Whitmore (7) — contributed well first half and put his body across the line with little protection from officials. Influence missed after he was injured.
K Evans (7) — was solid calming Influence alongside McLoughlin. Passed well when he limited touches
Kamwa (7) — busy game and worked hard off ball, had several decent chances inside area but denied. Got caught offside a bit and needs to check runs.
Martin (6) — did a job right side but looked more comfortable through the middle. Worked hard to get in amongst it but forces deeper second half.
Ajiboye (8) — had an excellent first half and timed runs very well allowing extra yard he still had pace to beat defender. Constant menace with strong direct runs.


SWOT ANALYSIS (Salford City)
Strengths — balanced, strong in aerial duals especially centre backs and pressed well as a unit.
Weaknesses — full backs pushed high and left space in behind. Impatient on times with some late tackles and became increasingly frustrated late on.
Opportunities — started with 433 and reverted to 343 later in 2nd half
Threats — Kouassi aerial prowess. Shepherd verve and crosses right side. Tilt aerial threat set pieces and long throws

OFFICIALS
S Simpson (6) –awarded two pens but ignored much of the cynical shoving and some crude challenges


MAN OF THE MATCH
James Clarke — well positioned to deal with threat from crosses. Put in a number of brave challenges and gave defence stability and assurance.


IF YOU WERE NELSON JARDIM WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
Keeping a settled happy side and not chopping and changing unless necessary is going to benefit County in the long run. The back four did very well today despite being put under different types of pressure and Salford largely threatened when they charged forward to press in packs and pinch the ball in midfield. However, this carried risk and County were dynamic in transition and if some offside calls had worked better for Kamwa, County may have add to their score. The second half saw County show another side to their game dogging out and competing well in the 1v1s. Next up is Barrow at Rodney Parade and a period of important home games in February where County need to set an early marker. Barrow are likely to play a 532 system with Acquah offering an aerial outlet and Gotts strong with supporting runs left side. Barrow have plenty of height so key County protect to limit set piece threat and keep the ball low to spin them on their heels quickly in transition.