Newport County boss Nelson Jardim praised the grit and organisation of his side after they secured a hard-earned point in a goalless draw against Walsall - despite being reduced to 10 men for the final stages.
Ciaran Brennan’s 78th-minute red card looked to have handed the initiative to a Walsall side desperate to reignite their faltering push for automatic promotion.
But Newport stood firm, frustrating the visitors and nearly snatching a late winner themselves before surviving a stoppage-time scare.
“Definitely (happy with a point), a valuable point up against a very good team that spent a lot of months at the top of the table,” Jardim said.
“It’s a promotion-chasing team so a valuable point but not only that, it’s the way you compete and perform and I think we were up to the level again today, managing to keep a clean sheet on the back of last week as well."
Newport found themselves on the back foot early on as Walsall started brightly, eager to end their 12-game winless run.
Nathan Asiimwe had the clearest opening in the first half, forcing Nick Townsend into a sharp save, while Newport’s Bobby Kamwa blazed over after the interval in one of the home side’s rare sights of goal.
Still, Jardim’s team grew into the game before losing captain James Clarke to injury.
Then came the pivotal moment: Brennan’s challenge on Taylor Allen saw the midfielder dismissed, forcing Newport to dig deep.
“The red was in the 78th minute but, with injury time, we had to play for 22 minutes a man down and we showed the character and the fight that sometimes these boys have been accused of not having,” said Jardim.
“I think it was quite even, and for spells we were the better team, but after the red card we had to adjust a couple of things."
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Walsall threw everything forward late on and thought they had stolen it in the dying seconds when Oisin McEntee bundled the ball home — only for the officials to rule it out for handball.
On the disallowed goal, Jardim remarked: “We could see it clearly. It was the right decision.”
“So the fight and the organisation we need, the boys showed that the last two games and I know that's two important points for us,” Jardim said, clearly proud of his players’ response under pressure.
Meanwhile, Walsall boss Mat Sadler cut a frustrated figure as his team’s automatic promotion ambitions suffered another setback, leaving them fourth with just two games left.
“We were obviously desperate to win the game,” Sadler admitted.
“We knocked on the door and I thought we played very well. I’m disappointed we didn’t win but we don’t know what that point will mean [come the end of the season].
“We’ve got to keep believing that it could be the decisive point.”
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Sadler acknowledged the referee’s call to disallow the late goal but felt let down by the process.
“I did think we had all three,” he said. “I don’t understand why he didn’t just put his flag up. I thought it was handball but I thought we’d got away with one – a bit of luck we haven’t had [lately].
“Sometimes that’s football – it’s a cruel mistress at times and it puts you through the wringer.
“We thought we’d snatched it and to let our supporters think we’d won it leaves a bad taste in the mouth."
