Swindon Town vs Newport County - prediction, team news, lineups

By Ben Sully | 20 Sep 2026 19:54, Last updated: 20 Sep 2026 20:48

Newport County will travel to Wiltshire for a Group E clash against Swindon Town in the 2026-27 EFL Trophy.

The Exiles are yet to play in the EFL Trophy this season, while the Robins started the group stage with a defeat to Crystal Palace Under-21s.

Swindon head into Tuesday's contest on the back of a three-game losing run that started with a heavy 4-0 defeat to York City in League Two.

They then fell to a narrow 2-1 defeat to Crystal Palace Under-21s in their first EFL Trophy outing since being thrown out of last season's last-16 for fielding two ineligible players.

Ian Holloway's side experienced more disappointment in Saturday's away league clash against Salford City, which was decided by Joe Powell's 77th-minute effort. 

As a result of that 1-0 defeat, Swindon finished matchday seven in 13th spot in the League Two table, a point adrift of the top eight and a point clear of the bottom two.

Swindon will now turn their focus to EFL Trophy action, with the Robins battling to avoid a group-stage exit for the first time in three years.

The hosts can take confidence from the fact they have won each of their last four meetings with Newport County, including a 2-0 victory at the County Ground in February.

Newport, meanwhile, may appreciate the distraction of the EFL Trophy, having gone six games without a win since beating Rochdale 3-0 on the opening day of the season.

The Exiles have at least bounced back from back-to-back defeats with consecutive draws against Fleetwood Town and Accrington Stanley.

Hayden Mullins's side played out a goalless affair in Saturday's away meeting with Accrington, representing their first away point of the League Two season.

As a result, Newport have moved up to 19th place and a point clear of the bottom two as they now turn their focus to their first EFL Trophy game of the season, with the Exiles aiming to avoid a fifth consecutive group-stage exit. 

Newport have not beaten Swindon since recording a 2-1 victory at Rodney Parade in February 2024, while their last win at the County Ground came via a 1-0 scoreline in April 2022. 

If they are to win, it may come by a similar scoreline, considering they have failed to score more than once in any of their last four outings.

Swindon remain without the services of Ollie Palmer, Joe Snowden, Joel McGregor, Ben Middlemas and Gavin Kilkenny.

There are also doubts over the availability of Ryan Tafazolli and Matty Virtue, with the latter said to be back in training. 

In positive news, Mitch Clark is available for selection after serving a one-match ban at the weekend. 

As for the visitors, they remain without midfielder Keenan Patten, who is working his way back from a long-term injury.

James Crole and Kion Etete are making progress in their respective recoveries, although they will not be ready for Tuesday's away trip.

With Mullins expected to make changes, Jake Turner, Dan Sassi, Matthew Smith and Tanatswa Nyakuhwa are among those who could come into the starting lineup.

Ward; Clark, Debayo, Inwood, Kirkman; Ball, Butterworth; Pearman, Nichols, Glatzel; Hackford

Turner; Thomas, Sassi, Cameron, Jacob; Dibley-Dias, Smith; Adu-Poku, Bamba, Nyakuhwa; Gwengwe

Swindon may have lost their opening EFL Trophy game, but they have fared well in recent meetings with Newport, and with that in mind, we think they will emerge victorious by a narrow scoreline. 

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