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by Barrow Lad New » Sat May 02, 2026 7:24 pm
We continued our long tradition of a one-goal defecit at home in a “foot of the table 6-pointer”, losing 2-1 to a Newport County side who celebrated long after the final whistle. In the end, Newport could have lost- and stayed up- but less than half an hour earlier they had looked doomed as we held a deserved 1-0 lead and the relegation battles elsewhere were all still draws.
Josh Gordon’s saved penalty two minutes into the second half, aimed straight at keeper Wright, proved eventually to be the turning point. Galvanised by this let-off, Newport gradually took the initiative and levelled in the 76th minute after a Barrow defensive mix-up in the area. Seven minutes later a strike from the left gave Newport the lead.
When McCann grabbed a 9th minute Barrow lead from a superb Harper cross from the right it looked like the unlikely great escape, at least from a Barrow goalscoring point of view, might be on. We had already come close to scoring less than two minutes in from a McCann free kick into the box and had then also had a Jackson corner cleared.
Our debutant keeper Barrett looked confident both in saving and kicking, effectively launching a number of attacks. At the other end, Rose had a shot saved by Wright in the 26th minute, and then he tipped over another effort from McCann, before Harper skied a shot from 20 yards.
In the 32nd minute, Barrow came close twice to doubling the lead. Raglan had a goal-bound shot superbly saved, and from the rebound, a Williams effort was blocked on the line. Three minutes later, Wright saved a close-range Harper effort.
When Newport did get a rare opportunity, they squandered it though poor decisions and shooting. Lloyd shot wide of the right post in the 38th minute.
However, we also squandered opportunities, Gordon skying a narrow-angle shot from the right on the second minute of added time when he should have centered. Our corners also came to nothing and with the narrow 1-0 lead at half time, any great escape was starting to look doomed.
Things might have been different had we taken advantage early on in the second half. At half time, Newport replaced Jarvis with Davies, and less than a minute in Harper shot wide of the left post from a McCann assist.
Seconds later, a cross from the left into the Newport area led to a handball by Brennan. Josh Gordon stepped up to take the 48th minute to take the spot kick but a far from confident effort was aimed straight at Wright and we could not take advantage from the rebound.
The warning signs of a Newport revival began in the 56th minute when substitute Davies shot past the right post from the edge of the area. A minute later, Kamwa hit the bar from the left edge of the area. On the hour, McCann was booked for a foul on Sprangler.
Our own opportunities to score were now at a premium, Williams shooting wide in the 66th minute.
Seconds later, Foley replaced Hemmings with Newby. However, Newport were now on an upward trajectory, Crole shots being blocked in the 69th and 70th minutes. Crole then headed over from a Kamwa cross as it became only a matter of time for the leveller.
Kamwa shot over in the 74th minute. Two minutes later, a ball into our area was first cleared by Barrett but the rebound caused a defensive mix-up with a poor back pass from MacDonald, allowing Crole to set up Davies who fired home from close range.
A minute later, Foley replaced Gordon with Fletcher and Jackson with Anderson. These changes seemed to make matters worse, Anderson being booked for a foul on Crole within three minutes of coming on.
In the 81st minute, Newport gained a free kick from 25 yards. Sprangler’s kick led to a shot from Baker which Barrett did well to save. There was now relentless pressure from Newport, a Crole header and Kamwa shot coming close.
Finally, the breakthrough for the 83rd minute winner came as Sprangler assisted a strike from the left by Kamwa, giving Barrett no chance. Kamwa removed his shirt in celebration and was booked.
More changes in the 85th minute, Whitfield and Malcolm coming on for Rose and Raglan. Too little, too late. As Scott Smith was given Barrow’s man of the match, seven minutes of added time were announced. After Matt Smith came on for Kamwa, we nearly grabbed a late equaliser in the final minute as a McCann free kick led to an Anderson cross to Harper, who hit the right post. McCann then shot wide from a free kick and a Smith shot was saved.
Another home loss then, finishing three points below also relegated Harrogate. Newport overtook Tranmere to finish in 20th, four points above Harrogate.
Credit to the 930 Newport supporters who celebrated with the players afterward, after a more subdued acknowledgement was given by the Barrow fans to our players, both feeling the pain of the moment. At least one set one fans went away from Holker Street happy and, after watching their celebrations, I enjoyed chatting to Newport County supporters walking home, wishing each other all the best for the coming season. Total attendance was 3,588.
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