Newport manager Graham Coughlan praised his players for keeping their cool in a red-hot atmosphere as the Exiles warmed up for taking on Manchester United with a 1-0 victory over 10-man Wrexham.
A temporary stand has been erected at Rodney Parade to boost the capacity for the visit of Erik ten Hag’s men in the FA Cup next Sunday and it meant that 9,537 fans packed out the ground for the all-Welsh derby.
Wrexham defender Will Boyle was shown a straight red card for a studs-up challenge on Shane McLoughlin after just 18 minutes.
And Seb Palmer-Houlden headed in the only goal of the game after 34 minutes to earn the hosts all three points.
Coughlan felt his side used the support to their advantage and he insisted that they were on top before the red card.
“The atmosphere was noisy, and it was intense. It was really enjoyable for our players and fans, who have gone home happy,” said the Irishman.
“The atmosphere was always going to be a tester and we stood up to it and kept our discipline. The place was bouncing and I was really pleased the group kept their composure.
“Today was all about a derby game and about winning, no matter how you get over the line.
“We were really good in periods – more than a match for them and probably better than them.
“I just hope the sending-off doesn’t overshadow how good we were and how disciplined we were.”
Phil Parkinson claimed that the red card was the key moment of the match.
“Going down to 10 men after 18 minutes, it was difficult,” said the Wrexham manager. “We gave ourselves a mountain to climb and we couldn’t get any quality or rhythm in our play.
“It’s one of those challenges where he’s won the ball and caught the player on the follow-through.
“It’s a genuine tackle to win the ball and he’s caught him high. The linesman said the point of contact was dangerous and it’s a straight red.
“A lot was against us, in terms of the sending-off and losing four players to injury during the week. It’s a big disruption and the mountain was just too high for us to climb.
“Fair play to them, they used the conditions well and pressed right on to us. And we never really got a foothold in the game or implemented what we wanted to at half-time to get back into the game.
“It hurts when it’s a local derby and our fans have come down in their numbers and given us great support. But we’ve got nine days before our next game now and we’ll have to dust ourselves down and come back stronger.”
Michel delighted with Girona's return to form after injury boosts
Michel puts Girona's rediscovered form down to the energy of the returning players from injury after they thrashed Espanyol in LaLiga on Saturday.
Girona had endured a shaky start to the season but moved up to fifth in the standings on 21 points after a superb home victory featuring a Bojan Miovski brace and goals by Bryan Gil and Ladislav Krejci.
Michel's side have now won their last three LaLiga matches, going on their best such run since between April and May 2024, the last time they recorded three victories on the bounce.
"Today's victory, which is our third [in a row], it's due to the fact we got people back, because we've rested, because we've had a very good week of training and because that energy today was noticeable," Michel told a press conference.
"The only thing I hope is that we continue to recover people, that we continue to have the necessary minutes for everyone and that, as we have very tough games coming up every three days, we need everyone to be at 100%; we'll see if we can achieve this without any problems."
Yaser Asprilla and Krejci, back from injury, combined for the fourth goal, but it was the pairing of Miovski and Gil who made the night with lethal attacks for the second and third goals.
"I am very happy for Miovski, he is a player who gives everything in training," Michel added. "I was worried because he wasn't scoring goals.
"He always tries to do his best for the team, he needs time. I am happy for him.
"Bryan is a very important player for everyone, his best version is yet to come. Right now, the process with him is what we all expect."
Last season's surprise package Girona face Austrian side Sturm Graz in the Champions League on Wednesday and the manager hopes they can repeat Saturday's performance in the European game.
"This is the Girona I want, 100%. We started the game very well, that's the reality," Michel added.
"The first half hour was spectacular, with and without the ball... We had a presence up front. The first half hour is what we want to do this season."
Man United could be without Toone until new year, says Skinner
Marc Skinner revealed that Manchester United could be without midfielder Ella Toone until the new year after she picked up a calf injury in training.
Toone has featured in five games in the Women's Super League this season, but is yet to register a goal or an assist so far this term.
The 25-year-old has missed United's last two games and was not selected in Sarina Wiegman's England squad for their upcoming friendlies against the United States and Switzerland.
She had previously appeared in a staggering 96 straight matches before missing United's WSL showdown with Leicester City last weekend.
But ahead of the Red Devils' meeting with league leaders Chelsea on Sunday, Skinner confirmed they would be without Toone for not only that game, but for the foreseeable future.
"We have three games [after the international break and before Christmas]. There's always the hope, but I think you balance and you go, 'right, if we can get her back, we get her back'," Skinner said.
"But we're just not going to rush her in this moment because it's a calf injury, it's your running mechanism. If we injure the running mechanism, it takes longer.
"So ideally we'd like her back for those games afterwards.
"The projection is she misses this game [Chelsea], she misses the international window, probably misses the first game after that, and then we'll see from there.
"But because it is such a short block of only three games, we'll assess whether it's worth that or actually resetting to come back after Christmas."
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