Newport County booked their place in the FA Cup fifth round for the first time since 1949 after goals from Robbie Willmott and Padraig Amond gave the League Two side a shock, yet fully deserved, victory over Championship outfit Middlesbrough.
It turned out to be a particularly special night for Newport goalkeeper Joe Day who kept a clean sheet in the triumph, before darting down the tunnel at the final whistle after learning that his wife had gone into labour!
The shot-stopper had missed the club’s last couple of games as his wife was heavily pregnant with twins. But with the birth seemingly not imminent he came back into the first-team for the cup clash.
In truth, he had a quiet night with a toothless Boro mustering only one shot on target, but then come the end of the match he was told his wife had gone into labour, and subsequently sprinted over to gaffer Michael Flynn, who later told BT Sport:
“The professional (Day) he is, he turned his phone off. Then as soon as the game was over he said ‘gaffer, thank you so much, can I go please?’
“I said ‘of course you can, do you need a lift?’”
It’s since been revealed that Lizzie Day gave birth to beautiful twins at 8.13pm last night – stunning scenes.
What next for Newport?
The small matter of quadruple-chasing Man City at Rodney Parade…
The fans certainly aren’t frightened of the fixture, belting out “Manchester City, we’re coming for you” at full-time.
"He said gaffer, thank you so much, can I go please?"
Newport County goalkeeper Joe Day cut his celebrations short as his wife went into labour during the game!
Now that is dedication to the cause 👊 #DontMugOffTheCup pic.twitter.com/rotTqYtjAR
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) February 5, 2019