Bridgend did it again at Rodney Parade as they stole the spoils at the end of
another close encounter.
At the start of the season they won a Celtic League battle 13-5 at the same
venue and this time it was even closer. And had Newport’s replacement outside half Jason Strange been on target with his 81st minute penalty, Newport would surely have made it four home wins in a row.
Instead, Strange saw his kick rebound off the upright and Bridgend scrambled the ball to safety. With so much territory and possession Newport should have picked up the points, but instead Bridgend made it two wins out of two in the Welsh Premiership.
“I don’t know what we’ve got to do to score tries. It’s going to be very hard
to pick the players up after this defeat,” admitted the Newport head coach
Leigh Jones.
Three missed goalkicks by Shane Howarth forced Jones to replace him with
Strange early in the second half, but not even Strange could come up with the kick to win the match.
Former Springbok ace Percy Montgomery played throughout the 80 minutes on his senior Newport debut and impressed with his commitment and running.
But it was Montgomery’s opposite number, the former Newport player Gareth Cull, who took the man of the match honours. Not only did he kick two penalties, but he also made and converted the sole try of the game from Bridgend’s flying wing Aisea Havili.
That score came in the first half and forced the home side to play catch up
throughout the night. They almost made it, but once again fell to an agonising defeat.
Scorers: Newport: Pens: J Strange 3, S Howarth; Bridgend: Try: A Havili; Con: G
Cull; Pens: G Cull 2.
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