Blackburn Rovers survived an early sending off to defeat Newport County 2-1 in a rescheduled FA Cup third-round tie on Monday, booking a meeting with giant-killers Oxford United.
Rovers, managed by former Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert, led early through Ben Marshall's eighth-minute penalty but had Chris Brown sent off, with Mark Byrne then equalising for the League Two club before half-time at Rodney Parade, where the original fixture between these teams had to be postponed due to a waterlogged pitch earlier this month.
Jordan Rhodes won it for Blackburn in the 75th minute before the hosts' goalkeeper Joe Day saw red deep into injury time.
The game burst into life when Marshall won a penalty under the challenge of Scott Barrow, dispatching the spot kick confidently to earn his team the lead.
Two minutes later Blackburn found themselves a man down, Brown dismissed for a studs-up challenge on Medy Elito, who was taken off on a stretcher.
Newport equalised in the 30th minute as Byrne picked up the ball on the edge of the area and lashed an unstoppable strike into the top-left corner of Jason Steele's goal.
Substitute Rhodes restored Blackburn's lead with 15 minutes to go, directing a glancing header from a free-kick past Day.
The unfortunate Day was given his marching orders in the 95th minute for bringing down Craig Conway outside the area, as Blackburn secured a meeting with League Two Oxford, who knocked out Premier League side Swansea City in the biggest upset of the third round.
‘Maybe I’ll be signed by Wrexham, who knows? English football would suit me – if an offer came, I wouldn’t think twice, I’d go immediately’ Euro 2024 cult hero reveals his UK dream
‘Managing Leeds? It was an option that appeared, but it wasn’t the right timing. I decided it wasn’t a good idea to leave the club I was at mid-season’: Premier League boss admits to turning down opportunity to replace Jesse Marsch in 2023
