Manager Graham Coughlan admitted his side were second best after Newport County were defeated 2-0 against Mansfield Town at One Call Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
A brace from Davis Keillor-Dunn ensured the Stags secured all three points on home turf as Nigel Clough’s men continued their impressive unbeaten start in Sky Bet League Two.
“The better team won, I don’t think anyone can argue with that”, began Coughlan.
“We weren’t very good, we were poor with the ball and we didn’t ask enough questions. We had a little bit of momentum in the second half, we changed our system a little bit and that was the moment that we needed to really score a goal and we didn't.
“We had the ball for both goals so that’s the disappointing part of the afternoon. We had good possession of the ball at them points but we turned the ball over far too quickly and too easily. When you do that against top sides you get pushed and that’s exactly what happened to us today.
“Overall, they deserved the win as they were the better team on the day. They were clinical, took their chances when they came, but we didn’t take our chances at the other end."
Seb Palmer-Houlden and James Clarke were both included in the Exiles' matchday squad once again following their midweek EFL Trophy exit to Bristol Rovers, and Coughlan was pleased that the duo gained further minutes on their road to recovery.
“It was good to have them back again", he added
“We know at the moment we can only have them for a limited amount of time but hopefully over the next few weeks now we can build their match-day minutes up"
The Exiles will look to bounce back next Saturday as they host Stockport County at Rodney Parade, you can secure your tickets HERE.