Newport County 2 Tamworth 1

HITMAN Garry Shephard secured Newport County's fifth win on the bounce - and third place in the league - with a brace that dumped title-chasing Tamworth.

His eighth of the season on the stroke of half-time and his ninth with 20 minutes remaining lifts Newport into 13th position in the Dr Martens Premier Division.

If the Exiles win their two games in hand they could move into the top seven and a point behind Saturday's Newport Stadium visitors, who class themselves as championship contenders.

Tamworth were dealt a huge blow when keeper Darren Acton was carried off in the pre-match warm-up with a muscle spasm in his back.

For the first time this season, The Lambs had no reserve goalie, and centre-half Darren Grocutt had to take over the gloves with former Leicester City defender Steve Walsh, also struggling with a bad back, forced to make his debut.

But that should not take any gloss off County's important victory, which was also largely due to stopper Pat Mountain who made two tremendous reaction saves in the final two minutes, both at point-blank range, from Mark Turner and Tony Hemmings.

Mountain could do nothing to stop Tamworth's consolation five minutes into time added on when debutante Hemmings, a £7,500 post-Christmas capture from Ilkeston Town, smashed a shot against the post and Rob Gould tapped the rebound into an empty net.

The Midlanders dominated the first half but failed to get a shot on target with Rob Warner and Gould going close and midfielder David Foy having a goal disallowed for off-side.

Tamworth were first to everything before the interval and their huge backline were gobbling up any of the high balls to County's small strike-force, but they didn't take their chances which they later rued.

Shephard, who had a hook shot cleared off the line by Walsh earlier in the half, latched onto Alfie Carter's pass in the box and the pint-sized forward drilled a left-foot drive past Grocutt, who had no chance.

County looked at the races after the break and the goal seconds before the half-time whistle seemed to have knocked the stuffing out of Tamworth.

A Billy Clark header from a Carter free-kick went close and Steve Cowe, replaced by Martin Paul just after the hour-mark because he had a hamstring niggle, just failed to score when his curling shot flew inches past the visitors' upright.

Newport's lead was doubled when Shephard followed up a Nathan Davies shot which came back off Grocutt's body and the County hotshot squeezed it home.

Last term's 26-goal top-scorer was inches away from bagging his first hat-trick for 11 months, but he couldn't get on the end of Paul's square-ball across the box.

Tamworth rallied and introduced their top-scorer Mark Hallam, who has scored eight league goals, but the excellent back-four of County held firm. And when they were breached the dependable Mountain kept Tamworth out until Gould's last-gasp strike.

That goal and injuries to Cowe and left-midfielder Darren Ryan - replaced by Rhys Edwards after 25 minutes with a neck problem - were the only down side for Newport.

That excellent win means County go into 2002 on a real high and boss Tim Harris will be particularly pleased with his defence, which was again superb, as they came under some stick in the early part of the campaign.

* County striker Garry Shephard leaves Tamworth keeper Darren Grocott stranded but his shot is blocked on the line.