Graham Coughlan blasted the officials for denying Newport “a very legitimate goal” in their 2-1 defeat to Salford at the Peninsula Stadium.
Salford took the lead thanks to Matthew Lund’s 25th-minute header but Bryn Morris’s strike levelled things six minutes later.
An unfortunate own goal from Declan Drysdale put Salford back in the lead just before half-time.
The visitors thought they were level again on the hour, but Will Evans’ goal was disallowed and the Newport winger was booked for protesting to the linesman after he flagged for offside.
Exiles boss Coughlan said: “We scored a second goal which was a very legitimate goal. I don’t see what the issue is with it.
“We’ve looked back at it and we can’t see where they’re coming from, so we’re absolutely fuming to be honest. Decisions like that don’t belong in the game, someone needs to look at the decision and give us an honest explanation as to why the goal has been disallowed.
“There’s no excuses, you can’t disallow that goal but these guys get protected and that needs to be explained because it’s not good enough and we expect better.
“In my eyes, it’s a 2-2 draw today.”
Coughlan did also concede that errors cost his side.
He added: “We made two basic, silly errors and if you don’t make them errors you win the game today. I thought our performance overall was excellent, but we have to look at the errors and we have to look at the two goals that we conceded.”
Salford came into the game off the back of six straight defeats – a run that Neil Wood was relieved to put an end to.
Ammies head coach Wood said: “It was always going to be a battle to get back on track. We knew it was going to be a day like that and we were much better in that department than we have been in recent games, which was a positive for us, and it’s a relief.
“When we play quickly and we attack quickly, it’s a really high level to see. We need to make sure we are strong and difficult to play against. All of the things we looked to address this week in training, there was a large improvement.”
Salford travel to Gander Green Lane on Tuesday night to play Sutton, who currently lie at the foot of Sky Bet League Two.
Wood said: “We have to go to Sutton and put the same energy in, defend the same way, and when we get our moments create some chances.
“It was nice to win a game, but we have to go and do it again. We look forward to Tuesday night and next weekend and we have to win.”
No Neymar return until 2025, says Al-Hilal boss Jesus
Neymar will not return from his anterior cruciate ligament injury until January 2025 at the earliest, Al-Hilal boss Jorge Jesus has warned.
Neymar left Paris Saint-Germain for Al-Hilal in a €90million deal in August 2023, becoming one of the faces of the Saudi Pro League's major recruitment drive.
However, he only played five matches for the club before rupturing his ACL while on international duty with Brazil last October.
The 32-year-old subsequently missed the remainder of the season as well as the Selecao's ill-fated Copa America campaign, and he remains some way away from a return.
Neymar was removed from Al-Hilal's Saudi Pro League squad in September, with the 19-time champions only able to register a maximum of eight foreign players for the first half of the season.
Reports had suggested Neymar was close to a return after Al-Hilal posted footage of him training on social media, but Jesus says Brazil's all-time leading scorer must wait until the halfway point of the campaign before being considered.
"Neymar is an important player for Al Hilal and the league in general," Jesus told reporters on Tuesday.
"I can't, however, specify a date as to when he will return, but we will look at the situation in January."
With no restrictions on foreign players featuring in the AFC Champions League, Neymar could, in theory, play in that competition if he returns to fitness before January.
Al-Bukayriyah 0-1 Al-Hilal: Leonardo sends defending King's Cup champions through
Marcos Leonardo's first-half penalty was enough to book Al-Hilal a spot in the King's Cup round of 16 with a 1-0 win over Al-Bukayriyah.
The defending champions dominated from the start, with Abdullah Al Hamddan and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic both seeing early efforts saved by Dziugas Bartkus.
Al Hamddan then won the game-winning spot-kick in the 40th minute, being brought down in the box by Ibrahim Al Sunaytan, and Leonardo made no mistake from 12 yards.
Al-Hilal kept pushing for another goal, with substitutes Renan Lodi and Aleksandar Mitrovic both testing Bartkus in the second half, but they could not add to the scoreline.
Neymar, who is gearing up for his return to action after a year on the sidelines, was not involved for Al-Hilal, who lead the way in the Saudi Pro League.
Data Debrief: Leonardo proves the difference
Al-Hilal were dominant in the first half, completely overwhelming their opponents as they had 12 of their 17 shots before the break, getting five of those on target.
But across the 90 minutes, it was Leonardo who was the standout, having the second-most shots (three) and accumulating 0.82 expected goals (xG).
His only shot on target may have been the winning penalty, but he proved a handful as he also had the most touches in the opposition box (10).
Al-Bukayriyah 0-1 Al-Hilal: Leonardo sends defending King Cup champions through
Marcos Leonardo's first-half penalty was enough to book Al-Hilal a spot in the King Cup round of 16 with a 1-0 win over Al-Bukayriyah.
The defending champions dominated from the start, with Abdullah Al Hamddan and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic both seeing early efforts saved by Dziugas Bartkus.
Al Hamddan then won the game-winning spot-kick in the 40th minute, being brought down in the box by Ibrahim Al Sunaytan, and Leonardo made no mistake from 12 yards.
Al-Hilal kept pushing for another goal, with substitutes Renan Lodi and Aleksandar Mitrovic both testing Bartkus in the second half, but they could not add to the scoreline.
Neymar, who is gearing up for his return to action after a year on the sidelines, was not involved for Al-Hilal, who lead the way in the Saudi Pro League.
Data Debrief: Leonardo proves the difference
Al-Hilal were dominant in the first half, completely overwhelming their opponents as they had 12 of their 17 shots before the break, getting five of those on target.
But across the 90 minutes, it was Leonardo who was the standout, having the second-most shots (three) and accumulating 0.82 expected goals (xG).
His only shot on target may have been the winning penalty, but he proved a handful as he also had the most touches in the opposition box (10).
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