With Andy Sampson away on a break Stewart Shepherd took the helm. His first task was to find a replacement goalkeeper as Gary Streeter’s hamstring tightened up during the warm up and with Cameron Farley working, he turned to club captain Martin Mcdonough to pull on the gloves. Ryan Hughes returned at right back and Jacob Reynolds came in for Joe Craig who picked up a knock on Saturday.
Bournemouth looked lively from the start and grazed the bar on 10 minutes, but the ball flew over. Things got a little tight in the middle of the park and a few niggly fouls were breaking the game up as things got a little scrappy.
Newport continued to build up the pressure and got a break through just before half time. Neo Lamb picked the ball up just outside the Bournemouth penalty area, broke into the box and launched an unstoppable shot into the far corner of the net.
Half time: Newport 1 Bournemouth 0
It didnt take too long for Bournemouth to get back into the game when on 55 minutes Tyrone Carkeet headed home from a corner. The Poppies pressed on to try for a winner and another header hit the base of the post but went wide. On 62 minutes the referee awarded Bournemouth a free kick just outside the Newport area even though it appeared a straightforward tackle from the sidelines. Lewis Harvey stepped up to drive the ball through the crowded penalty area into the net.
George Holmes came on for Jake Wright as Newport went in search of an equaliser. As the game neared the end of 90 minutes Bournemouth tried to close the game down and keep the ball in the corners. As the game moved into injury time Newport broke away and managed to keep the ball around the Bournemouth penalty area. In a last desperate effort Newport threw everyone forward and on 93 minutes Connor Kelly picked out Neo Lamb in the area who bravely stooped down to head in from close range. With literally seconds to play there was no real time for anything to come from open play.
The tie would now be decided by penalty kicks.
Full Time: Newport 2 Bournemouth 2
Penalties
| Bournemouth | Score | 1-0 | Newport (Lewis Wright) | Score | 1-1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bournemouth | Score | 2-1 | Newport (Neo Lamb) | Score | 2-2 |
| Bournemouth | Saved | 2-2 | Newport (Jordan Browne) | Score | 2-3 |
| Bournemouth | Score | 3-3 | Newport (Jacob Reynolds) | Saved | 3-3 |
| Bournemouth | Score | 4-3 | Newport (Connor Kelly) | Score | 4-4 |
| Bournemouth | Score | 5-4 | Newport (Spike Pearce) | Score | 5-5 |
| Bournemouth | Score | 6-5 | Newport (George Holmes) | Score | 6-6 |
| Bournemouth | Saved | 6-6 | Newport (Scott Barron) | Score | 6-7 |
Newport: McDonough, Lamb, Hughes, Barron, Pearce, Sampson, Kelly, L Wright, J Wright (Holmes), Browne, Reynolds.
Referee: C McFarlane
Attendance: 68