Newport look to make it back-to-back home wins this weekend when they welcome Harrogate Town to Rodney Parade. Tuesday night’s fantastic display has boosted the atmosphere around the ground, with Graham Coughlan’s men feeling confident ahead of the match.
Matty Bondswell will look to hold his place in the starting eleven after an electrifying performance under the lights mid-week.
Omar Bogle will look to continue his fine goal-scoring form. The striker has bagged four goals in his last six appearances and will be hungry for more against a side he bagged four goals in two appearances against last season.
Will Evans also returned to his goalscoring ways on Tuesday, grabbing his eighth of the campaign, and he will look to build on that on Saturday afternoon.
Manager’s Comments
Newport County: Graham Coughlan was pleased with the progress his side have made in the past week, despite losing Adam Lewis to a quad injury, until at least the new year. Coughlan branded the recent week a 'positive' one and praised the atitude and commitment that the players have shown during the recent period.
"It's been a real positive week," explained Coughlan.
"We know Harrogate, the way they evolve each season, they grow and get stronger and stronger.
"They like to look after the ball, they're open and expansive. It'll be an interesting game but a tough encounter as they always are in League Two."
Harrogate Town: Simon Weaver praised Newport in his pre-match interview, saying that he knows Saturday’s game will be a battle and acknowledging our win against Colchester.
He said, “They (Newport) have got a good energy about them. They start games bright. I thought they were good the other night against Colchester; they played a tight three up-front and had decent legs in midfield. We know what we are coming up against, and we will try and acquit ourselves well.”
Opposition Form
Harrogate Town have had a very mixed run in their last few outings. The Sulphurites lost 1-0 at home to Wimbledon on Tuesday but, before that, had won back-to-back games, including an impressive 1-0 away victory to MK Dons.
Simon Weaver made a handful of changes to his team mid-week, with Abraham Odoh being left out of the squad due to injury. Jeremy Sivi was brought in to replace him, making his first full appearance of the season. Weaver noted the absence of Odoh presents others with the chance to impress themselves. He added that there are no fresh injury concerns ahead of Saturday’s match but Odoh is unlikely to play.
Ticket Info
Ticket prices for Newport County vs Colchester United are as follows:
|
Age Band |
Seated Advance |
Seated Walk up |
Terrace Advance |
Terrace Walk up |
100 Club Advance |
100 Club Walk up |
|
Adult |
£24 |
£26 |
£21 |
£23 |
£31 |
£33 |
|
Senior |
£20 |
£22 |
£19 |
£21 |
£26 |
£28 |
|
Young Adult 16-21 |
£18 |
£20 |
£15 |
£16 |
£22 |
£24 |
|
Under 16 |
£12 |
£14 |
£12 |
£14 |
£16 |
£18 |
|
Under 12 |
£10 |
£12 |
£12 |
£12 |
£14 |
£16 |
|
Under 6 |
£0 |
£0 |
£0 |
£0 |
£7 |
£9 |
Exiles can purchase their tickets at Rodney Parade on Saturday, though an additional £2 fee will be added.
You can buy tickets online here.
Last Time Out
Our last encounter with Harrogate Town was at the back end of last season. With safety long assured, County were out to put on a show for the home fans last time around, and while the result went against us, it was an entertaining encounter.
Harrogate needed a result against us to secure their place in the Football League, and their fans might have feared the worst when Omar Bogle opened the scoring in the third minute. However, it didn’t take long for them to bounce back, with goals from Sam Folarin and George Thomson in the space of four minutes, giving them the lead before the ten-minute mark.
The game slowed down after this, with a late flurry of goals providing some more action. Omar Bogle pulled us level in the 79th minute before Luke Armstrong’s late goal secured all three points for the visitors and secured their spot in the Football League for another season.
Head to Head
Harrogate Town’s location in the North of England meant that we never ran into each other during our non-league days. Our first encounter with the Sulphurites came in the 2020/21 season. We have played them six times since, with each game featuring a minimum of three goals. We have defeated them three times, drawn once, and lost twice. Our most notable win was a dominant 4-0 win away from last home season.
Played for Both
Amazingly, there are no notable players that have lined up for both Newport County and Harrogate Town, with the two clubs only sharing some history since Harrogate’s promotion to the Football League in the 19/20 season.