A closer look at the Exiles
THIS WEEKEND the Grecians return to St James Park to take on Newport County AFC, who currently sit 20th in Sky Bet League 2.The visitors will be looking for a third win in a row, after recent victories over Morecambe and Carlisle United, as they bid to stay clear of the bottom two.
The Exiles' current top-scorer is Scott Boden, who has eleven goals to his name in all competitions this season. The 26-year-old scored the winner last time out in Newport’s 1-0 win over Carlisle.
The Grecians were held to 1-1 draw when the two clubs last met back in October, when County were managed for the first time by John Sheridan. However, since Warren Feeney stepped up from the assistant manager position to take the top job, he has won three games out of a possible six, with ten points from the five league games.
Previous meetings with Newport County / AFC
With 115 official matches played between the two sides, County have often proved to be a stern test for Exeter City through the years.
The Exiles have the slightly better record over the Grecians, with the south Wales club beating Exeter forty-two times. City have been victorious on forty occasions meaning the two clubs have drawn thirty-three times.
EARLY MEETINGS
The first official match between the two clubs dates all the way back to 1920, when they battled it out in Division Three South. County won that game narrowly 1-0 at St James Park, and it was four more consecutive losses to County before the Grecians finally overcame them 4-0 in February 1923, although thatt was not a memorable season for the Grecians as they finished 20th.
WORLD WAR 2 INFLUENCE
The two clubs continued their battles, though neither team were able to beat the other consistently in the league, leading up to the break caused by the Second World War. The two sides did not play against each other for six years, between February 1939 and December 1945 as attentions turned to the conflict.
When the teams reconvened their respective football campaigns after the war, Newport thumped City 5-1 as they knocked them out of the FA Cup.
Between 1955 and 1957 the clubs met six times with City going unbeaten, picking up three wins and three draws as the game continued to redevelop in England post-1945.
With both clubs battling around the bottom tiers of English football they both entered into administration, firstly Newport in 1989, followed by City in 1994, although have both since become established League Two sides having put their financial difficulties behind them.
MORE RECENT RESULTS
After the financial troubles of the clubs were resolved, and after an extended run without any fixtures between the sides (from 1988 onwards), they met once again in League 2 in 2013, with Newport victorious this time, beating City 2-0 away from home in their first time at St James Park as Newport County AFC.
Since then the sides have met four more times, with City unbeaten against County and registering three draws and one win.