A scintillating second-half display from County saw them comeback to defeat League One Charlton Athletic 3-1 and book their spot in the second round of the Carabao Cup in what was a tremendous night of action at Rodney Parade.
Coughlan made several changes to the team that started against Accrington, with James Waite, Harry Charsley, and Josh Seberry all being handed their first starts of the campaign.
The visitors also presented a changed team, with Dean Holden making several swaps from the team that defeated Leyton Orient on Saturday.
A cagey opening ten minutes set the tone for a gritty first half. Charlton looked to control the game from the back but found themselves under early pressure, with County matching them tackle for tackle in a determined display.
The opening twenty were bereft of clear-cut chances for both teams. A searching through ball from Jameson nearly found Seb Palmer Houlden, only to be stopped by the outstretched leg of Charlton skipper Michael Hector, while Tayo Edun dragged a shot wide for the visitors.
The battling nature of the opening 30 continued, with Hector picking up a yellow in the 27th minute for a challenge on Seb Palmer Houlden. We continued to cause issues for The Addicks, and a sustained period of play saw Harry Charsley force a corner.
The resulting delivery from Widlig presented one of the best chances of the half, as Josh Seberry was denied a goal by Harry Isted.
Despite this period of play, The Exiles were dealt a sucker punch in the 43rd minute when Daniel Kanu steered a shot from Tyreece Campbell into the back of the net.
Heads did not drop, though, with some stylish link-up play from Arran Wildig and James Waite finding Palmer Houlden, who narrowly flicked the ball over from close range.
Half-time
The home team were quick out of the traps in the second half, with a clever piece of play resulting in Bryn Morris forcing an early corner. This provided County with their best chance of the game so far, as a loose ball in the box was rattled off the bar by Harry Charsley.
The Exiles continued their ariel assault on the Charlton penalty box, with the home fans in fine voice behind them, attempting to will the ball into the net.
Shortly after, Coughlan made his first change of the game, subbing Scot Bennett for Adam Lewis in the 56th minute.
Seb Palmer Houlden, a thorn in the side of the Charlton defence throughout the game, was the key to the breakthrough County had been searching for. A period of pressure saw him dispossess the Charlton defence in the box, flicking the ball to Aaron Wildig, who cooly slotted past Harry Isted, levelling the game and getting us up and running for the night in the 63rd minute.
Palmer Houlden’s determined performance was nearly rewarded with a goal of his own minutes later when an excellent through ball from Harry Charsley found him in the box. The resulting effort was agonisingly close, going centimetres past the post and denying Newport the lead.
The visiting team could not muster a response in the immediate aftermath of the goal, with a long-distance effort from Charlie Kirk being their only notable chance.
Coughlan went to the subs bench again in the 71st minute, with Matty Bondswell coming on for goalscorer Wildig to make his League Cup debut.
He certainly made it one to remember. Just minutes after coming on, he made a darting run into the penalty box, playing a low ball across to Will Evans, who converted in style to give us a deserved lead in the 76th minute.
We were not done yet, though. Harry Charsley dispossessed the Charlton defence on the edge of the box, feeding the ball to Seb Palmer Houlden, who slotted past the keeper, grabbing his first goal in front of a jubilant Rodney Parade in the 80th minute and putting us 3-1 up.
Our search for goals was relentless, with Will Evans firing a shot into the grateful arms of Charlton keeper Harry Isted just minutes later.
Charlton upped their search for a second in the closing stages, with seven minutes of additional time being added. Charlie Kirk came closest, giving Rodney Parade a scare when his deflected shot rattled the post in the 90th minute. An inspired back-line was more than up for dealing with the task, though, with Nick Townsend on hand to prevent a late attempt from Alfie May, with Michael Hector hitting the follow-up wide.
There was still time for us to tease a fourth, with some neat link-up play from Bondswell and Evans, seeing Evans hit the ball narrowly wide in the dying moments.
The full-time whistle sparked jubilant celebrations in the home end, with attention now turning to the second-round draw and our next opponents.
You don’t have to wait long to see County take to the pitch at Rodney Parade again, with Doncaster Rovers visiting us this coming Saturday afternoon. You can purchase tickets to the game here.
Newport County: Townsend, Delaney (C), Seberry (McLoughlin, 92), Jameson, Evans, Morris, Bennett (Lewis, 56), Charsley, Wildig, Waite (Kai, 93), Palmer Houlden (Bright, 92) Subs: Maxted, Bondswell, Bowen, Lewis, Bright, Rai, Wood, McLoughlin,
Charlton: Isted, Mitchell, Ness, Hector, Chin (Campbell 14), McGrandles (May, 77), Payne, Camara (Taylor, 46), Edun (Thomas, 70), Kanu, Kirk
Subs: Maynard-Brewer, Egbo, Thomas, Dobson, May, Taylor, Anderson, Blackett-Taylor, Campbell Attendance: 2,600 (617 away support)