EBBW Vale had a player sent off for a head butt after 13 minutes, saw two more yellow-carded to Newport's one, and for one brief spell near the end were down to eleven men in a niggling Gwent derby at Rodney Parade last night.

The result of their indiscipline, inevitably, was a heavy defeat, their eighth in nine games, but they escaped a complete drubbing, a result of their own never-say-die spirit and Newport allowing events to disrupt their rhythm.

After prop Lyn Williams' moment of madness in front of the referee after a scrum, Newport added three converted tries via number eight Rhys Jones, left wing Will Kershaw-Naylor and flanker Paul Williams to add to James Rowles' seventh-minute effort.

And when powerful prop Gethin Robinson barged over for outside half Daniel Griffiths to add his fourth conversion for a 33-0 lead after 42 minutes a complete rout looked likely.

But the floodgates never opened and though replacement flanker Mark Popham grabbed two further tries from close range drives, lock Rhys Bowen grabbed one via the same method for Vale.

And even after centre Jonathan Hawker had been yellow-carded in the 68th-minute and outside half Byron Hayward for verbal abuse in the 75th, replacement flanker Manu Tuipulotu got another converted try two minutes from time.

He injured himself in the process and until replaced by Tristan Mabbutt, Vale were momentarily down to 11 men.

Newport full back Rowles had been yellow-carded by busy Cardiff referee David Bodilly in the 25th-minute for a body check on Vale wing Andrew Bevan.

"We were up against it from the start and to lose a prop after 13 minutes meant it was immediately over as a contest," said Vale team manager Alun Harries.

"You can't argue with a player being sent off for a butt, but I thought Hawker's yellow card was harsh. And Byron was giving one of his own players a rollicking and the referee interpreted it as aimed at him.

"When we had the ball I felt we played some good rugby, but we were living off scraps." Newport coach David Rees commented: "Sometimes you have to show magnanimity in victory and defeat. They didn't show a lot when they won up there earlier in the season and tonight I was disappointed at some of the sly shots going in.

"But I don't want those issues to detract from a good win, though we knew the game was won at half-time and did some silly things in the second half."

While Ebbw Vale had equal numbers, they had shown ability to run and cause problems and even when down to 14 men and fewer they continued to try to spread the ball.

Newport looked sharp in the first half, both Rowles' early try and the third by Kershaw Naylor following flowing back moves, but with a forward advantage they relied largely on their pack afterwards and all four of their remaining tries followed close-range drives as they failed to make their opponents pay a heavier toll.

Newport: J Rowles, G Chapman, R Shorney (D Robinson 74min), R Payne, W Kershaw-Naylor, D Griffiths, G Hall (A Walker 55min), D Pattison (G Mason 55min), A Brown, G Robinson (S Cronk 68min), D Davies, M Veater, N Kelly (S Waldron 65min), P Williams (M Popham 53min), R Jones.

Scorers: tries: M Popham (2), J Rowles, R Jones, W Kershaw-Naylor, P Williams, G Robinson; conversions: D Griffiths (4).

Ebbw Vale: A McLaughlan, S Horner (D Phillips 35min), K Owen, J Hawker, A Bevan, B Hayward, S Headington, L Williams, L Murray, L Davies, G Jones (M Tuipulotu 55min, T Mabbutt 79min)), R Bowen, C Cleaver (G Burns 17min), M Scudamore, M Griffin. Scorers: tries: R Bowen, M Tuipulotu; conversion: D Phillips.