Cheltenham Town welcome Newport County to the Jonny Rocks stadium in league action for the first time since November 2018. The sides met in a Checkatrade goal fest in November 2019 but the two sides haven’t met in League Two since the 2018/19 season.
Originally the fixture was called off due to Newport player’s international duty before the Coronavirus pandemic saw the game go unplayed last season. The game was rearranged this season too as the robins third round tie took precedence over their meeting with Newport.
FORM
Cheltenham have struggled for form as of late, without a win in the last six league games and with only two scored against six conceded. Duff’s men looked to be on the up after the fan’s return saw the 5-3 win in a top of the table clash over Exeter but the robins didn’t push on as expected and have fallen to sixth place in the league. Cheltenham's last game was a 1-1 draw away to Bolton Wanderers.
Opponents Newport have also struggled recently, falling from the perch but only to second place. The last six results have seen one win (2-0 away to Grimsby), three draws and two defeats. County picked up six points in this time, compared to Town’s four. Newport's last game was a penalty shootout loss to Birghton on the FA Cup and a 1-1 draw away to Crawley before that.
Both teams will look to regain their form which powered them towards the top of the table and want to avoid prolonging their winless runs.
TEAM NEWS
The home side will be without midfield powerhouse Liam Sercombe who injured his knee against Colchester in December. The former Bristol Rovers man was sent to a specialist and fans and staff alike hope it won’t be a lengthy absence.
Michael Duff is unsure if Chris Hussey is likely to be involved with Lewis Freestone expected to fill in at left back again.
PAST MEETINGS
The clubs last met in the league in January 2020, where the clubs tied 1-1 at Rodney Parade. In November 2018 Cheltenham came out on top, winning 2-1 at Whaddon Road. The clubs have met three times in the Papa John’s Trophy since the last Whaddon Road league meeting. There have been two 1-1 draws and a 7-4 victory for Newport.
FANS VIEW
Marc Peplow, a lifelong Newport County fan, had this to say:
“So obviously tonight we play Cheltenham Town. It’s a difficult one as both teams are near the top of the table and this game isn’t usually a big spectacle.
“By how close the teams are, it would never be considered a derby, absolutely not, but today’s a big one because both teams will be up there all season. There’s definitely some tension in terms of how tight the league is at the moment.
“We’ve been in freefall, we’ve not done great recently, haven’t won in quite a while. It’s our first away game of 2021 so it should be interesting. We’ve lost a lot of loan players, so I’m interested to see how we play considering.
“Hopefully we win obviously but I won’t be surprised if it’s a draw or a loss.
“I’m not too worried about Tozer’s long throws, we’ll have prepared for it because we know Cheltenham quite well. Tozer did it quite often when he was at Newport. I’m not too worried about tactical engagement, I’m more worried about performance and execution tonight.
“Tonight is a big one for both teams, I’m excited to see how it goes. I’m going for 1-1”.
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