Vital Statistics
Founded: 1912
Chairman: Tony Pring
Last Season: League Two - 22nd
Nickname: The Exiles, The Ironsides
Rivals: Cardiff City, Merthyr Tydfyll, Forest Green Rovers
Major Honours
None
Scheduled Matches
Portsmouth vs Newport: Saturday, March 25th (3pm)
Newport vs Portsmouth: Monday, December 26th (3pm)
Newport County: A brief history
Formed in 1912 as The Newport and Monmouth County Association Football Club, the Ironsides were elected to the Football League in 1920 and played in the bottom two divisions for much of their history, although they lost a second division game by a record 13-0 scoreline to Newcastle in 1947.
The early 1980's saw Newport's most glorious era as they ended an 18-year stint in Division Four with promotion, won the Welsh Cup and were narrowly beaten by Carl Zeiss Jena in the European Cup Winners' Cup quarter-final. Unfortunately the end of the decade saw relegation to the Conference and then expulsion as County went bust in February 1989.
Newport were reformed in June of the same year and begun to climb the non-league ladder. Promotion to the Conference came after beating Havant & Waterlooville in 2010 and they were confirmed as Conference South champions with a record 103 points. Three years later the Exiles beat Wrexham in the play-off final to regain their place in the Football League.
The Manager: Warren Feeney
The 35-year-old striker never played more than a hundred games at his numerous clubs including Bournemouth, Leeds, Luton, Plymouth and Linfield where he was appointed player-manager in 2014.
The Northern Irishman then joined Newport as John Sheridan's assistant before being promoted to manager when Sheridan went back to Oldham last January.
The Ground: Rodney Parade (Capacity: 7,000 - Away: 1,063)
My first thought when approaching Rodney Parade was "This place is a dump!" and my second thought when approaching Rodney Parade was "Where the hell is the away entrance!?" It's a narrow alley and very difficult to find amongst the houses. Still, you can always ask the local Heddlu of which there will be plenty after the needle between Newport and Pompey fans during the two fixtures in Wales last season.
Unfortunately I didn't take a photo of the temporary away stand behind the goal but believe me when I say it's terrible. If you ever went to Brighton's Withdean Stadium you'd get an idea only it's smaller, further away from the pitch, more open to the elements and very difficult to see the other end of the pitch. You could always choose to sit in the Bisley Stand instead, if you don't get a seizure looking at the multicoloured seats first.
Opposite the awful temporary stand is the Town End; a bog standard terrace for the Newport fans which is also a fair distance from the pitch, as it's also used for Gwent Dragons Rugby matches which require a longer surface.
On the left is the old looking Hazell Stand which looks a bit like a smaller version of Fratton Park's North Stand. The river Usk flows behind this stand.
Overall, I can confidently say that Rodney Parade is the worst football ground in League Two. The surrounding area is a dive, the facilities in the ground are poor, the view from behind the goal is terrible and the atmosphere can get quite heated from what I've seen and heard. Unfortunately the quality of my photos taken during the JPT night game aren't great so they can't do too much justice to the ground.