Newport County earn first away point of the season with goalless draw at Accrington Stanley.
Newport made two changes to the starting eleven that faced Fleetwood Town, with Shaquille Gwengwe and Michael Adu-Poku making way for Kieron Evans and Joe Thomas.
The hosts showed early attacking intent and came close to opening the scoring, but Jordan Wright was on hand to make a comfortable save before being awarded a foul.
Wright was called into action again moments later as Accrington continued to apply pressure, with the County goalkeeper doing well to turn the effort behind for a corner.
County looked to create an opening of their own, with Matt Dibley-Dias delivering a dangerous cross into the penalty area which was cleared by the hosts. Another ball was then played forward towards Kyle Cameron, but the County defender was flagged for offside.
The visitors began to settle into the contest and applied pressure of their own, winning a number of corners as they looked to test the hosts’ defence.
Kieron Evans provided a threat on the counter-attack, using his pace to break forward and create an opening, although his final effort failed to trouble the target.
Cameron Norman then delivered an inviting ball into the area, which was met by Lee Jenkins, but the defender’s header flew narrowly wide.
County continued to threaten as the first half progressed, creating several promising opportunities without finding the decisive finish.
Matty Jacob tried his luck from just outside the area, but Moulden was equal to the effort, making a smart save to keep the scores level.
Norman continued to provide an outlet from the right, sending a well-weighted cross towards Kyle Cameron, whose header was comfortably gathered by Moulden.
The game continued to flow from end to end, with both sides creating openings as they looked to take control. On the stroke of half-time, the contest remained finely balanced, with neither side able to break the deadlock.
Dibley-Dias showcased his defensive work-rate early in the second half, winning an important ground duel to halt a promising Accrington counter-attack.
Christian Doidge then connected with another delivery from Norman, directing his header towards goal, but the effort drifted just beyond the far post.
County continued to pose an attacking threat after the restart, with Evans presented with another promising opportunity, although his effort sailed over the crossbar.
The hosts looked to regain momentum as an awkward ball was played into County’s penalty area, but Wright dealt with the danger confidently, commanding his area to collect.
Dibley-Dias then produced a crucial last-ditch block inside the area to deny the hosts, completing an impressive recovery run to prevent the effort from reaching the target.
Jacob continued to provide an attacking outlet, sending a teasing delivery across the face of goal, but nobody in black was able to get on the end of it.
Accrington looked to threaten from a free-kick, but Dibley-Dias was alert to the danger and cleared the set piece away from the County penalty area.
Joel Catesby then came close for the hosts following a scramble inside the area, but his effort sailed over the crossbar.
Another opportunity fell to Jacob, whose strike was on target but proved awkward for Moulden to handle. The goalkeeper spilled the effort, before Accrington eventually managed to clear the danger.
With neither side able to find a breakthrough, County held firm to secure their first away point of the season.
Newport County: Wright, Cameron, Jenkins, Brennan, Evans (Adu-Poku 65’), Biggins (Nyakuhwa 85’), Thomas, Jacob, Norman, Dibley-Dias, Doidge (Gwengwe 85’)
Substitutions: Turner, Smith, Bamba, Sassi
Accrington Stanley: Moulden, Love, Coyle, Mols, Caton (Stockton 53’), Anderson, Walton, Conneely, Tutonda (Catesby 81’), O’Brien (Smith 65’), Woods
Substitutions: Rogerson, Borland, Brown, Warren
Referee: Jamie Robinson
Assistant Referee: Bradley Hall
Assistant Referee: Wayne Grunnill
Fourth Official: Richard Holmes
Attendance - 1743 (218 away)
