Newcastle boss Rob Andrew tonight admitted that his team had been outgunned by rampant Heineken Cup opponents Newport after the Falcons crashed to a 53-17 defeat at Rodney Parade.

Andrew, who rested a number of players following Tuesday night's rearranged game against group six winners Leinster, saw Newport score seven tries, three from their left wing Matthew Watkins.

It all left Newcastle with a final group record of five defeats from six starts, and while Newport are also out of quarter-final contention, they at least finished on a high.

Newcastle's list of absentees included Jonny Wilkinson, Tom May and Stuart Grimes, but Newport were in no mood to show mercy.

"We have to put the Heineken Cup behind us now. We had a bad start, losing our first game at home to Newport, but we also produced a couple of outstanding performances," Andrew said.

"We had a very young side in action tonight, but we were outgunned. We also made some silly mistakes in the first 20 minutes, and you cannot afford to do that because the game got away from us."

There was also an injury blow for the Falcons, with wing Liam Botham going off suffering from a suspected recurrence of ankle ligament trouble.

Newport coach Ian McIntosh was delighted with his team's display, and accepted that a home defeat against Leinster in November had proved severely damaging in terms of quarter-final ambitions.

"That Leinster game is the one we really regret. I still wonder how we lost it," said McIntosh, recalling a match that his team dominated throughout but still contrived to lose.

"We have got to put tonight in perspective. Newcastle have had two games in quick succession, both of them on the road.

"But I was pleased with some of the tries that we scored, and the way the players are making decisions for themselves on the field."

Although Newport are out of Europe, they can now look forward to a top-of-the-table Welsh-Scottish League clash against Llanelli at Rodney Parade next Friday, when victory would take them clear with two games in hand.