Bristol Rovers

Rovers named a competitive squad for the fixture, with Lee Mansell, Byron Moore and Liam Lawrence all included in the starting line-up for the game.

Rovers were able to create early chances and were almost ahead in the opening minutes when winger Jake Gosling delivered an inviting cross into the area that took a heavy deflection from the Newport defence which caused the ball to bounce off the post. 

In the tenth minute, Rovers found an opening when a close-range shot from Luke James took a series of deflections before being turned in from close range by Jamie Lucas for the opening goal of the game.

Byron Moore came close to getting on the scoresheet, with the winger forcing Newport 'keeper James Bittner into making a save with his fingertips down low to turn his effort past the post. 

Rovers doubled their lead just before the break when Newport conceded a penalty for a foul on Luke James inside the area. Liam Lawrence took the resulting penalty, sending a powerful side-footed effort into the bottom corner to double Rovers' advantage in the game.

In the second half, Luke James created a shooting opportunity for himself, but from the edge of the area, the striker could only direct his shot into the arms of Newport 'keeper James Bittner.

Rovers assembled a late chance when Ryan Broom directed a deep cross to the far post that was met by Jamie Lucas, but after timing his jump well the striker couldn't keep his header on target. 

In the closing stages of the game, Rovers were able to shuffle their squad, introducing a number of younger players as substitutes and were able to see out the remainder of the fixture to record the victory. 

Rovers: Kieran Hodges (G), Tyler Little, Sam Hedges, Danny Greenslade, Ryan Broom, Lee Mansell (74' Connor Jones), Liam Lawrence (74' Luke Russe), Jake Gosling (87' Matt Swan), Byron Moore (67' Tyrone Tucker-Dixon), Luke James (67' Lewis Ellington), Jamie Lucas.