Town player ratings after Newport County defeat
GRIMSBY Town came off second best once again as they fell to a 2-0 defeat at home to high-flying Newport County.
Former Mariner Padraig Amond once again came back to haunt his old side as his penalty all-but wrapped up the three points for the league leaders just before half-time. Scott Twine had earlier given the visitors the lead with a deflected free-kick, while Owen Windsor went closest for the Mariners as he struck the crossbar after the break. Here’s how the players rated in their latest defeat at Blundell Park on Tuesday…
Sam Russell: A surprise inclusion – unlucky as he was left wrong-footed for the opener, and got close to Amond’s penalty. His distribution is certainly a plus point 5/10
Luke Hendrie: Gave away the freekick that resulted in Twine giving Newport the lead. Picked up a booking in the process, meaning he’ll miss a crucial game against Mansfield 5/10
Luke Waterfall: Handed the captain’s armband in McKeown’s absence. May have been lucky to escape further punishment after a hefty challenge on Labadie 5/10 Mattie Pollock: Solid enough display at the back from the academy graduate. Brought the ball forward fairly well at times as Newport afforded Town more space after the break 5/10
Harry Clifton: Proud moment as he made his 100th appearance for the club. Worked hard on the left of defence, and given Hendrie’s suspension and Preston’s injury, he might have to get used to playing there 5/10
Terry Taylor: Showed a few decent touches, but couldn’t quite get himself involved in the game enough to make a telling impact 5/10 Danny Rose: A rush of blood to the head just before the break all-but ended Town’s hopes of making a comeback. Hard to know what he was thinking at that moment 3/10
Elliott Hewitt: Worked hard and gave his side some drive in midfield. Could – and perhaps should – have had an assist to his name after setting up a superb chance for Gibson 5/10
Owura Edwards: Clear he’s still a very raw talent. Superb at times in build-up, but lacking the crucial final touch 5/10
Montel Gibson: Spurned a golden opportunity to put Town ahead, which could have made things a lot different. Wasn’t to be his night 4/10 Kyle Bennett: Wasn’t quite as fluent as he was at Colchester. Found himself having to move around all over the place as Town switched formations in search of a way back into the game 4/10
From the bench
Owen Windsor (Rose 45): Almost made an instant impact as his freekick struck the bar. Didn’t get much of a sight of goal thereafter though 5/10
George Williams (Edwards 71):
Showed plenty of willingness to get on the ball, but couldn’t make an impact as Newport saw out their win 5/10
Joe Starbuck (Gibson 75): Did okay after coming on. Might well get more opportunities as the injury list grows 5/10
James Morton (Taylor 84): Too late to make any impact.
Not used: McKeown, Idehen, Khouri.