League Two club Newport County has erected a new temporary stand ahead of two massive fixtures.

The stand was built earlier this week ahead of the team’s league matchup with Wrexham. The fellow Welsh side journeyed across the country to Newport’s home arena of Rodney Parade on Saturday.

Rodney Parade opened in 1877 and typically holds just under 8,000 fans on matchday.

Nevertheless, the new stand will increase this capacity by around 1,000 people. This temporary structure was constructed just behind the North Terrace of the stadium.

Newport eventually edged Wrexham on the day 1-0 thanks to a lone goal from Seb Palmer-Houlden. The visitors, however, went down to 10 men early in the game after William Boyle was sent off in the 18th minute.

Newport defeated Wrexham in front of the temporary stand
Newport defeated Wrexham in front of the temporary stand

Mighty Manchester United comes to town next week

Newport will now elect to keep the temporary stand in place for an FA Cup fixture. The upcoming match will not exactly feature typical opponents for the Exiles. In fact, Manchester United will come to town in the fourth-round tie on Sunday, January 28th.

The Welsh club advanced after edging National League side Eastleigh in the previous round. The two teams initially drew 1-1 in their third-round matchup, but the Exiles eventually won the return fixture on the road in Hampshire.

Introducing the new stand will also help the club comply with FA ticket allocation guidelines. The visiting Red Devil fans will be provided 400 seats in the away end of Rodney Parade. It will be the first time that United has traveled to South Wales to play Newport in a competitive match.

Newport coach claims to be lifelong United fan

Following news of the aforementioned draw, Newport manager Graham Coughlan could not contain his excitement for the moment. “It’s a fourth-round tie against Manchester United, for me the biggest club in this country, in Europe, and in the world,” Coughlan told BBC Sport Wales.

“I know some people would lean towards the fifth-round game against Manchester City, but I’d say Manchester United all day long.”

The Welsh side’s manager also admitted that he and his family are all United fans. “We’re a big Manchester United family. We’ve been to FA Cup finals with them,” continued Coughlan. “I can’t get my head around it, to be honest, they are unbelievable names.”

“Just to have Manchester United coming to Rodney Parade is a hell of an achievement. I don’t know when it will sink in, I’m sure my family are doing Irish jigs around the house at the moment.”

Newport is currently sitting 14th in the League Two table following the victory against Wrexham. The club has never collected an FA Cup trophy and has only reached the second tier of the English soccer pyramid once before. This occurred following their triumph in the third division way back in 1939.

Manchester United, on the other hand, has collected the FA Cup title 12 times in their illustrious history. The Red Devils have also won the Premier League a record 20 times as well.

Photo credit: IMAGO / PA Images