Tanatswa Nyakuhwa is relishing a fresh start at Newport County after returning to Rodney Parade for a second loan spell from Cardiff City.
The 20-year-old winger initially joined County in January and made seven appearances before an injury brought his first spell to an early end.
Now back in his hometown, Nyakuhwa is determined to make a greater impact during the 2026-27 season.
“I’m delighted, to be fair,” Nyakuhwa said.
“Obviously coming back from a hamstring injury which cut my spell here short last season, so it was almost like coming back to finish where I started off last season.
“Coming back on a clean slate, a new start, start of the season. Hopefully a good showing this year and tear up the league table.”
Nyakuhwa experienced a difficult situation during his first spell, with County ultimately securing their League Two status on the final day of the season.
While he was unable to play in the decisive victory at Barrow because of his injury, the winger was delighted to see his teammates complete the job.
“It was a different situation. Obviously, I had to stay in the league last season, which I took some experiences from coming into this season.
“It feels like a different feel. Started off quite well, the boys are doing well.
“Obviously I was watching from home and, yeah, it was a nerve-racking feeling and obviously delighted for the club and the boys, really.”
The return to Rodney Parade also means Nyakuhwa is working with a new manager, with Hayden Mullins having outlined a clear vision for how he wants his side to play.
The winger believes Mullins’ approach can bring the best out of him.
“Great guy. I had a chat with him this morning, actually, and he has a clear idea of how he wants to play, how he’s going to use me and how he wants the team to play and how he wants me to help the team.
“Hopefully I can do that and bring my qualities to the team.
“His clear identity of how he wants to play, I’m very much on board with that and I’ll fight for him as much as I can.”
Nyakuhwa was unable to show his full potential during his first spell, with his seven appearances coming from the bench, although he did provide two assists.
The 20-year-old believes there is much more to come from him this season.
“I don’t think so,” he said when asked whether County had seen the best of him.
“I had spells, patchy spells also. Not much consistent run of games.
“I’m sure the fans would have seen a bit of what I’m about. I had two assists and one of them was quite an important one.
“I know I can do a lot more, bring a lot more to the team.”
Having returned to training around three to four weeks ago, Nyakuhwa believes he is now ready to compete for a place in the starting eleven.
“I’m fully fit. It’s been a long five months, but I’m back, fully fit and ready to go.
“I’ve had a good solid block of training and played my first game as well, so it was good to be back out there.”
The winger is also relishing the competition for places within Mullins’ squad, particularly following the arrival of several new attacking players.
“Obviously there’s more competition in the front areas now with the few additions that we’ve had.
“But the manager’s ideas of how he wants to play are clear and I think that gives us all an opportunity to stake a claim in the team and make the shirt yours.
“So it feels like a clean slate for me.”
Nyakuhwa has also been reunited with fellow Cardiff City player Kion Etete, with the striker joining County on loan for the remainder of the 2026-27 season.
The pair have already developed an understanding on the pitch.
“Yeah, I actually played with him in my first game back,” Nyakuhwa said.
“He scored in that game and I got an assist in that game, so I’m looking forward to being with him as well, to be fair.
“Hopefully we can bring some attacking firepower to the team and we’ll see that with goals and assists.”
For Nyakuhwa, the opportunity to score his first Newport County goal carries extra significance given his connection to the city.
“It means a lot. It’s my hometown, you know, so I’ve been waiting for that moment for a while.
“Hopefully we’ll be able to get more than just the one as well. I’m looking forward to it.”
Having grown up attending matches at Rodney Parade, Nyakuhwa is also eager to experience the atmosphere from the pitch.
“Can’t wait,” he said.
“I was speaking to my friends about the atmosphere at Rodney Parade. You can’t beat it really.
“You can’t replicate it at any other ground, in my opinion, so I can’t wait to play in front of them again.”
With a second chance to make his mark at his hometown club, Nyakuhwa believes the move comes at an important stage of his career.
“I think it’s a moment in my career where I feel I need to kick on and I thought this was the right step for me.
“Hopefully I can show the fans what I’m about.”
Nyakuhwa is refusing to place a ceiling on what County can achieve this season, instead challenging himself and his teammates to aim as high as possible.
“I don’t like to put a limit on those kind of things.
“If you limit yourself, I think you put yourself in a ceiling where maybe you could have reached higher.
“I don’t like to limit myself. I try and aim as high as possible and we’ll see what happens.”
With Mullins having assured him that opportunities will come, Nyakuhwa is now focused on earning his place and making his second spell count.
“He told me that I would get opportunities, and so it’s up to me to take that shirt and keep it.
“Obviously, there’s a lot of competition within the squad. Some boys are doing well already, starting the season with a few goals, scoring goals, and hopefully we can keep them out of our own net and progress up the table.”
