After scoring twice in Notts County's Capital One Cup upset over Huddersfield Town in August, not even Liam Noble could have imagined he would become a hero once again.
Noble's spectacular long-range effort helped Ricardo Moniz's side defeat the Terriers and progress to the second round of the League Cup, but the 24 year-old would eclipse that in a thrilling 4-3 victory over Newport County on Saturday.
The former Sunderland and Carlisle United midfielder pegged Newport back in the 34th minute after they took an early 2-0 lead at Meadow Lane. This helped Notts recover to take a 3-2 advantage in the second half thanks to a brace from Izale McLeod, the first coming moments after Noble had struck the woodwork with a curling free-kick.
Noble was then involved in the lead-up to McLeod's second, feeding Jon Stead, who supplied a phenomenal ball for the striker to head home.
Scott Boden equalised for the Welsh outfit with six minutes remaining but Noble was not done yet.
With the Magpies seemingly throwing away three points after wrestling back the lead, Noble won the hearts of his supporters as a dramatic 96th-minute goal sent the home fans into bedlam. One lucky fan received his shirt and posted his thanks on Twitter, whilst the official Notts County page went into overdrive.
It was heartbreak for Newport's travelling contingent, but Noble's winner could be the catalyst for Moniz and his players. After their sluggish start to the campaign, and their disappointing 2-0 defeat to Salford in the FA Cup, the victory should give them the motivation to push themselves up the right end of the League Two table of which they currently occupy 14th position.
NOBSA MAKES IT 4-3!!!!!!!!!!!! THE SCENES HERE AT MEADOW LANE!!!!!!!
— Notts County FC (@Official_NCFC) December 12, 2015The men of the moment check in with Colin. pic.twitter.com/M1Ln4fqzOk
— Notts County FC (@Official_NCFC) December 12, 2015@Official_NCFC@liamnoble1991 great game and cheers for the shirt Liam pic.twitter.com/pOzG9o27Bq
— Reece (@Reecey_96) December 12, 2015And you can see the highlights of the Notts County v Newport County match below:
By Joe Baker
