Press Association Sport Staff
There were mixed emotions for Newport manager Hayden Mullins after his side fought back to earn a 1-1 draw against 10-man York at Rodney Parade.
York led 1-0 in the fourth minute when Ollie Pearce stroked home Alex Hunt’s through-ball, but the visitors then had fellow forward Jovan Malcolm sent off in the 24th minute for catching Lee Jenkins in the face with an elbow.
And Cardiff loanee Kion Etete came off the bench to level with his first touch in a County shirt as he headed in Tanatswa Nyakuhwa’s cross in the 54th minute.
“I’m happy with the second-half performance,” said Mullins. “It’s always tough when you play against 10 men. The hardest thing is breaking a team down when they drop off.
“We changed shape a little bit for the second half and the boys were better. We gained a bit more control, moved the ball into areas where we could hurt them and it’s pleasing that Kion came on and got his first goal because it’s never easy.
“York are a good team, they showed that even with 10 men,” he added.
“Am I disappointed that we didn’t win? Possibly, but we didn’t lose. So, we’ll take the point.”
The draw ensured that Mullins’ men maintained their unbeaten start to the campaign at home and they are now unbeaten in eight matches in all competitions.
County climb to 11th in the table, just a point below the League Two play-off places, while York are up to fourth.
Minstermen manager Scott Lindsey was not happy with referee Neil Hair’s decision to show Malcolm a straight red, but he was proud of the way his players responded to that setback.
“It’s not a red card, for me,” said Lindsey. “It’s not an elbow.
“The player’s made more of it than there is, fair play to him. The referee’s obviously not that experienced because he’s got drawn in to the crowd calling for it and it completely ruined the game. We’ll probably be appealing it.”
Joe Grey and Hunt had chances to double York’s lead after the red card, but Shaquille Gwengwe also headed on to the bar for the hosts late in the first half before Etete levelled early in the second.
“I thought we played better with 10 men but the second half became really difficult,” said Lindsey.
“The players gave me absolutely everything. They left themselves out there. It was unbelievable.
“We’ve gained a point, but we haven’t – we’ve gained so much more. The togetherness of the lads was something else. They know how hard they’ve had to work for that point, because it’s a tough place to go with 11 men – let alone 10.”
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