Manager Graham Coughlan was left frustrated after his side fell to a narrow 1-0 defeat against West Ham United U21 at Rodney Parade.
Gideon Kodua’s wonder second-half strike was enough to give the Hammers all three points in Group P of the EFL Trophy.
“I’m obviously frustrated,” began the Exiles boss.
"The amount of shots we had, and the amount of opportunities we created, it was disappointing. We played some really good play in the final third but we just couldn't finish it off.
“I thought we were a little bit flat. I didn't see any drive or determination. I may be wrong here, but they looked as if they (West Ham) wanted it more than us. It’s easy for me as an experienced player to tell the boys what to do but I can’t play the game for them.
“There were a number of occasions tonight where we should be reading things better, we should be putting ourselves in better positions. We shouldn't be getting involved in silly things that go on.
"Sometimes tonight I thought we played into their hands and actually looked at times, especially in the last ten minutes, that we were the U21’s team and them the pros. It shouldn't be like that and we have to do better.
“It was a frustrating night and some of the lads showed us this evening where they are at in their stage of development.”
He finished: “Your mentality has got to be a winning mentality. You've got to have that mindset and you've got to have that hunger and desire for every game of football you play. We will take the positives out of tonight and get ready for the FA Cup and Oldham on Saturday.”
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