Newcastle United midfielder Isaac Hayden says there's no excuses after their FA Cup dumping by Watford's fringe players.

The Hornets eased through to the last 16 with a 2-0 win at St James' Park despite making 11 changes from their Premier League starting line-up of a week earlier.

“I just think we got found out, really," said Hayden. “We couldn't get near their midfielders and when they had so much time on the ball, they were able to do what they wanted with it.

“The distances were just too big, that's it in a nutshell.

“We couldn't really get a foothold, because we gave the ball away quite cheaply. We were getting there late to things and when you do that, they can play around you."