Bromley manager Andy Woodman relieved after win over Newport keeps them top

Bromley manager Andy Woodman was relieved after his side earned three vital points in a 2-1 win over Newport at Hayes Lane to keep the Ravens top of League Two.

An own goal from Courtney Baker-Richardson put the hosts ahead at the end of the first half. Nicke Kabamba doubled the advantage after 74 minutes, while Newport substitute Nathan Opoku halved the deficit with three minutes remaining.

Bromley remain two points ahead of Swindon, while County are still in 23rd place.

“I thought it was a tough game,” admitted Woodman. “Credit to them (Newport) – they made it difficult. The second half was much better and we pressed on to them much better.

“For us to get the goal at the end of the first half was great as it meant they had to come out at us. I’m disappointed we didn’t keep a clean sheet, to be honest. But it is a great result and on to the next one.

“It’s always a bit tricky when you concede a goal with three or four minutes left, but we were quite solid and got across the line. The three points is the most important thing.”

Woodman has now guided the Ravens to 10 wins in their last 11 league games and he praised his table-topping team’s resilience.

He added: “We have a long way to go but we are on the right path. We are quite chuffed about where we are at the moment.

“We will have to rotate the team as you can’t keep churning it out with that level of mileage.”

Newport boss Christian Fuchs, meanwhile, insisted his side were superior at Hayes Lane and deserved more from their efforts.

“Playing-wise, we were the better team over 90 minutes,” he said.

“Competing with a physical Bromley team, they did it really well and fought for every ball. Their first goal was at the worst possible time but the boys never stopped. The performance was really good and I only saw one team playing out there, and that was Newport. We can build on this performance.

“Nathan (Opoku) did really well and scored the goal. Big compliments to all the players. You could see how much effort the players put into this game.”

Fuchs has to wait and see if midfielder Sammy Braybrooke will extend his loan spell at Rodney Parade from Leicester as County seek to strengthen in the current transfer window.

“Sammy has not signed with a different club yet but the conversations are going on,” added the Newport chief. “I have a really good team here who just need to believe more in themselves. Let’s look forward even if Sammy doesn’t stay and we can go and stay in the league.

“The bottom line is we need to put points on the table. We are active in the market and hopefully we can announce one or two more signings.”