PORTLAND UNITED 2

NEWPORT (IoW) 3

BLUES’ boss Gary Bailey admitted he was left “stunned” and “embarrassed” by his side’s second-half showing against Newport (IoW) at Grove Corner.

The Blues were seemingly cruising at half-time having led 2-0 but crumbled to a 3-2 defeat, in a display that was slammed by their manager.

“Stunned is the word I would use to describe it,” he told Echosport. “It was a poor second half performance and one that I did not see coming. We all came off at the end of the first half with a spring in our step.

“I can only put it down to a mental state of mind. Thinking we had won the game, we switched off and they wanted it more than us in the second half.”

Bailey felt when his side were 2-0 up, they were in “complete control of the game”.

The Blues opened the scoring on 10 minutes when Jamie Beasley broke into the box and was brought down. The referee awarded a penalty which Alex Halloran converted.

And with half an hour gone, Max Buckler added a second. He took aim and found the net from the edge of the box after good work from Beasley, Halloran and Ross Doidge.

Following the break, Newport then made it 2-1 when Josh Younie headed in at the back post from a corner.

And, after the visitors had gone down to 10 men when one of their players picked up a second yellow card, on 66 minutes, Darren Powell added a second after the Blues failed to deal with a long ball.

With Portland shellshocked, it was the Isle of Wight side that added a third to win it through substitute Liam Triggs.

He fired home from 10 yards after the ball had been cut back from the left-hand channel.

Assessing the second-half performance, Bailey added: “I just hope they (his players) are as disappointed as I am. I will praise them to the hilt when they deserve it but that second-half performance was embarrassing.”

He continued: “It’s no good coming in at half-time, doing half a job, and expecting teams to think ‘oh it’s Portland and they are two up, that’s the end of that game’.

“All the lads need to wise up and realise it.”

Blues: Lillington, Smith, Whyton, Carmichael, McKechnie, Doidge, Buckler (Watts 75), Halloran, Bastick, Beasley (Godfrey 70), Richardson. Sub not used: Bessant

Attendance: 159

Programme sponsor: New Body Fitness

Match ball sponsor: Alan Gough