Job done

[Haxey-Hood-DRFC]

Could have been a banana skin tonight, and it's another point towards promotion. I'm happy.

[ballysbackin]

Yes I will take that point, resurgent Newport and crap pitch and injuries..Considered

[drfchound]

Yes, agreed.

[Copps is Magic]

Feels to me like two points dropped. Newport have won 2 home games all season. On a reasonable pitch this was never a tricky game for us, it would be a whitewash.

[ballysbackin]

Well Fergie and Butler are happy with the team.. And they (Newport) have not won three

[drfchound]

Feels to me like two points dropped. Newport have won 2 home games all season. On a reasonable pitch this was never a tricky game for us, it would be a whitewash.

Yes Copps, but taking the conditions into consideration it is acceptable.
I have already said that we are six points clear and have a far superior goal difference.
Give me points in the bag over games in hand any day.
Plymouth will be hard pressed to overcome Exeter.

[ballysbackin]

Two hard earned points this week against teams that did not want to play football, tonight Williams and Marquis got pulled down breaking away. JM got split head but did kick the pig that give it him..Yes got booked but payback

[Haxey-Hood-DRFC]

We'd love to win every game, but it's not going to happen, no matter how invincible we think we are.  What matters most right now is to draw and win more than lose. And that's what we've done. The chasers still have it all to do.

[Copps is Magic]

Not sure I want Exeter to win that one.

I'll be happy when we get to 79 points. As I posted in another thread, only way we would not get to that is a collapse to 1 point per game, which is what we've had last two games with another tricky one against Carlisle.

[ballysbackin]

And Exactly this time last year it went  up

[drfchound]

Not this time though.

[ballysbackin]

I am with you there..... 

[andysly]

Only feels disappointing because of the draw last week and 3rd and 5th to play next week.

[ballysbackin]

Yes Andy but they need to win so probably will play football instead of not

[eastender]

Feels to me like two points dropped. Newport have won 2 home games all season. On a reasonable pitch this was never a tricky game for us, it would be a whitewash.

Newport got rid of 11 and brought in 13 new players in the transfer window , so it is hardly the same team that started the season and got stuck at the bottom of the table.
In fact they haven't been beat in their last 5 L2 games and that run includes 1 of their 2 home wins.

[roverstillidie91]

17 points out of 21 in last 7 games.

[big fat yorkshire pudding]

My thoughts entirely. Well earned point against a team fighting to survive, awful pitch etc.  Two big games to come now.

[Susan Abbott]

Could have been a banana skin tonight, and it's another point towards promotion. I'm happy.

We've dropped 4 points in two games against teams who are just rubbish . Williams is been given the nod when he should have been given a rest . Two games 1 goal scored . A bad run starts like this , let's hope Carlisle don't pick up all 3 .


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[roversam]

We're  doomed I tell thee  😊

[RoversAlias]

We can't win every week, look at the state of that pitch tonight. Tough to deal with, we are still top and the chasers have really tough games tomorrow. 10 games unbeaten now!

[BobG]

Susan: Newport were definitely not rubbish tonight. They're not going to score a shedload of goals but they're not rubbish. They were well organised, very determined, extremely highly motivated and good enough to be a mid table sort of side.

The pitch was basically about 500 tons of sand with an occasional blade of grass poking through. Although the crowd was only 2500 ish the locals were brilliant. Almost non stop noise and it was pretty loud where I was. The match itself wasn't a classic. It couldn't be on that dung heap. We played hoof it and chase. They played hoof it and chase too. Every now and then we had a go down the wings and we looked good then - but it didn't ever fall just right all evening.  We didn't really get to threaten their goal all that much although on a different day maybe one of those low crosses from the wings might have found an attacker. Newport didn't threaten us either though I had kittens every time Lawlor punched the damn thing. Why can't he catch it? He made a right balls of 2 or 3 punches and it could all have gone horribly wrong.

Thought Joe Wright was good. Andy Butler did his usual effective agricultural job. Rowe had his hands full with the Newport right back. A gent called David Pipe. Jesus. You wouldn't wanna tangle with him on a dark night. One local told he he spent a couple of years in prison while playing for Brizzle Rovers because he glassed a Brizzle City supporter! I could believe it. He was no pushover.

The ref wasn't as bad as some I've seen - but then he wasn't brilliant either. Several dives by both teams he fell for - Willo did one I'd have sent him off for. The match wasn't as niggly as I expected given the morals of their manager. It did warm up a bit in the second half and the crowd got their dander up a bit but it was all handbags really. Marquis did his usual awesome chasing and harrying job. He ended up sporting a Terry Butcher bandage and showing his naked chest to the assembled throng while mopping the blood off everywhere.

Two hard working teams, a terrible pitch, a freezing night, honours about even I reckon. We looked to have better quality but we didn't, or couldn't, display it too often. Still, I did enjoy the evening.

Bloody expensive going over that bridge though! £6-70!!!

BobG

PS Sorry. I should have said the Rovers attendance looked pretty reasonable. The announcer said it was 397 or something like that. That excluded me cos I bought a ticket for the wrong stand... I didn't hear our lot much but they were out in the open in the far corner while I was under a nice roof with the natives!

[Pancho Regan]

Thanks for the report Bob

[Rovers91]

Beat Carlisle on Tuesday and last night was a good point but lose to Carlisle and it will feel like 2 points dropped against bottom of league.

[IDM]

We are now unbeaten in how many games?

Folks see Newport as bottom of the league but they are on a little unbeaten run of their own..

Don't forget where Exeter were in the table a culoiple of months ago?

We may get a draw on Tuesday too, won't be the end of the world.. if we can still average 2 points per game for the last 16 fixtures we will finish on 95.  Plenty!!

[Avsuptem]

BobG report very entertaining, far better read then BBC sport etc. Thanks.

[ReadingViking]

Susan: Newport were definitely not rubbish tonight. They're not going to score a shedload of goals but they're not rubbish. They were well organised, very determined, extremely highly motivated and good enough to be a mid table sort of side.

The pitch was basically about 500 tons of sand with an occasional blade of grass poking through. Although the crowd was only 2500 ish the locals were brilliant. Almost non stop noise and it was pretty loud where I was. The match itself wasn't a classic. It couldn't be on that dung heap. We played hoof it and chase. They played hoof it and chase too. Every now and then we had a go down the wings and we looked good then - but it didn't ever fall just right all evening.  We didn't really get to threaten their goal all that much although on a different day maybe one of those low crosses from the wings might have found an attacker. Newport didn't threaten us either though I had kittens every time Lawlor punched the damn thing. Why can't he catch it? He made a right balls of 2 or 3 punches and it could all have gone horribly wrong.

Thought Joe Wright was good. Andy Butler did his usual effective agricultural job. Rowe had his hands full with the Newport right back. A gent called David Pipe. Jesus. You wouldn't wanna tangle with him on a dark night. One local told he he spent a couple of years in prison while playing for Brizzle Rovers because he glassed a Brizzle City supporter! I could believe it. He was no pushover.

The ref wasn't as bad as some I've seen - but then he wasn't brilliant either. Several dives by both teams he fell for - Willo did one I'd have sent him off for. The match wasn't as niggly as I expected given the morals of their manager. It did warm up a bit in the second half and the crowd got their dander up a bit but it was all handbags really. Marquis did his usual awesome chasing and harrying job. He ended up sporting a Terry Butcher bandage and showing his naked chest to the assembled throng while mopping the blood off everywhere.

Two hard working teams, a terrible pitch, a freezing night, honours about even I reckon. We looked to have better quality but we didn't, or couldn't, display it too often. Still, I did enjoy the evening.

Bloody expensive going over that bridge though! £6-70!!!

BobG

PS Sorry. I should have said the Rovers attendance looked pretty reasonable. The announcer said it was 397 or something like that. That excluded me cos I bought a ticket for the wrong stand... I didn't hear our lot much but they were out in the open in the far corner while I was under a nice roof with the natives!

Not sure I agree fully Bob, as someone said after the game 'I thought they came for a point'  - time wasting from minute 1, niggly fouls, holding and shirt pulls all night. At one point I couldnt work out if we were playing Newport County or Newport Gwent Dragons. Typical Westley tactics. The pitch was awful but it didnt hinder them as much as us as they had no desire to play football merely trying to stop us playing.

This will go down as a good point at the end of the season and JMs head aside it appears we got away without any injuries.

Awful game, great battling performance and the support was awesome, never shut up all game.

[idler]

That was surely the worst pitch that I've ever seen us play on and that includes friendlies. Newport put the effort in but half the time were playing something between rugby and wrestling. Why did the referee pull it back to our half when John Marquis was about to break one on one with their keeper? Booking their player could and should have been done when the attack finished. They never stopped time wasting and the incident where three of their defenders were throwing it to each other to stop us taking a free kick ought to have seen at least one booking. Graham Westley is a disgrace and should be charged with crimes against football.
Nothing fell for us in their box and twice anybody following up would have had an open goal. On the plus side Joe Wright and Craig Alcock came in and looked like that they had played all season. We also have an extra 24 hours over our rivals before the next game and no injuries.
It's still looking good. We are in a position where dropping a point or two doesn't harm us as much as those chasing us.

[Jimmydee]

That's a good report Bob, you didn't mention that Lawler did a great save in the first couple of minutes tat certainly would have changed the game, maybe if we had conceded an early goal then it might have spurred us on to a win as we have done on a couple of occasions this season.

[GazLaz]

That's a good report Bob, you didn't mention that Lawler did a great save in the first couple of minutes tat certainly would have changed the game, maybe if we had conceded an early goal then it might have spurred us on to a win as we have done on a couple of occasions this season.

I thought that. On a pitch like that you try to remain solid and not take risks, going a goal behind means you are forced to.

[nice one rovers]

I said that at half time. We could have done with being a goal down, and we'd have won it 2:1.