 |
| Newport County And Hereford United At Rodney Parade in 2012 |
This afternoon Newport County play Manchester City in the fifth round of the FA Cup. No doubt it is their biggest game since the club reformed in 1989.
Four people who were involved in reforming the club have been talking to the Guardian in advance of the game.
One of the four, Tim Harris, is current head of football at Hereford FC. He became manager in 1997.
"I was absolutely buzzing to have the opportunity. I remember sitting in
the King [pub] for a fans’ forum, not long after, and there must have
been about 250 people there. I said to them: “Guys, I’ve got to tell you
something now: if you still think you’re a Football League club, and
don’t accept where you are now, you’ve got no chance of moving forward.”
It didn’t go down very well."
Newport won promotion with Harris to the Dr Martens Premier League in 1999. But it took another eleven years to move up to the next level.
Around this time Harris was back, not as manager but as director of football. Not long afterwards lotto winner Les Scadding put over £1M into the club and became chairman.
In May 2013 Newport defeated Wrexham at Wembley in the Conference play-off final and were back in the Football League. But it wasn't all plain sailing as several seasons later they were facing relegation before current manager Michael Flynn was appointed.
"I think it’s fair to say that before Flynny took over, the club was
getting relegated. Flynny played for me when he was a 17-year-old. He is
one hell of a character. I remember Justin saying to me when he was
manager: “We need somebody in midfield.” I said: “Bring the boy Flynn
back, he’s got passion, he knows what this club is all about.”
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/football/2019/feb/15/newport-county-inside-story-club-rose-dead-manchester-city-fa-cuphttps://www.theguardian.com/football/2019/feb/15/newport-county-inside-story-club-rose-dead-manchester-city-fa-cup