holders Hartridge High suffered English Schools FA Cup heartbreak last night as they crashed out in the semi-final to Letchworth Highfield School.

The Newport school lost 5-2 in Hertfordshire last night - a defeat which quashed dreams of a treble.

Hartridge, who won the Under-19 individual trophy last year, scored first through right-winger Richard French and midfielder Allan Stevenson gave them hope at 3-2 but the home side struck twice more.

Under the banner of Newport County, the players have already won the South West Counties League title and in the semi-finals of the Welsh Youth Cup.

Last night's defeat was only their second loss of the season. But academy coach Glyn Jones was proud of his side's achievements and said:

"My players have played a lot of games," he said. "And I think it just caught up with them because they seemed a yard off the pace.

"However, it's a great learning curve for them because if they are to be part of successful teams, they will have to play a lot of games.

"The boys are absolutely gutted but we have done our best. Highfield were a very tough side and we made too many errors that they capitalised on."

Meanwhile, Newport County's ticket office will be open from 10am to 8pm tomorrow selling tickets for Monday's home FAW Premier Cup semi-final with Cardiff City. Tickets cost £10 for adults, £6 for senior citizens and £3 for juniors.