LATICS’ five-match unbeaten run came to an end despite a lively performance against fellow form team Newport County.

Tyreeq Bakinson’s solitary second-half strike was enough to take all three points back to South Wales as Athletic suffered their first defeat since the opening day of the season.

With Gevaro Nepomuceno and Daniel Iversen away on international duty, Frankie Bunn gave Wigan loanee Callum Lang his first league start of the season, while Zeus De La Paz was handed his league debut in goal.

Sam Surridge, so impressive against Barnsley in midweek, led the line, alongside Chris O’Grady, with Lang offering support from the left but often coming inside to great effect in a fluid frontline against the Welshmen’s back three.

Latics asked all the questions in an even first half without creating too many clear-cut opportunities.

An enterprising run by Lang on 26 minutes, in which he played a neat one-two with Surridge after coming inside brought half-hearted shouts for a penalty as he went down under a challenge. Referee Alix Pashley opted for a corner.

Lang was the focal point once again three minutes later when space opened up in front of him just outside the box but the forward didn’t connect as he would have liked and goalkeeper Joe Day was able to gather comfortably.

Athletic had some defending to do seven minutes later when Newport enjoyed their best spell of the game.

Firstly, a deep cross from the left fell to Josh Sheehan who smacked an effort goalwards only for De La Paz to produce a smart stop. From the resulting corner, Fraser Franks forced De La Paz into an even better save when his piledriver was pushed round a post.

Latics came close to opening the scoring just five minutes after the restart when Lang set off on a mazy run towards goal, jinked his way past two defenders, then fed Surridge to his left. The Bournemouth man elected to roll the ball across the face of goal when maybe a shot would have been the better option with no-one prepared to attack his inviting ball.

Johan Branger-Engone was next to go close when he headed Lang’s deep left-wing cross straight at Day. All positive signs with the home side firmly on the front foot.

But it was the visitors who came up with the winner when Dan Butler threaded an inch-perfect through ball to Bakinson down the left. He was able to pick his spot and fire low into the corner on 69 minutes.

Bunn’s response was to introduce Jose Baxter from the bench as O’Grady made way.

Christopher Missilou – effective in breaking up play all afternoon alongside Dan Gardner – tried his luck from range with 10 minutes left but his shot was beaten away.

Substitute Mohamed Maouche let fly in the dying seconds of five minutes time added on as Athletic kept going right to the end, piled on the pressure and showed plenty of desire to get back into the game but the equaliser wasn’t forthcoming.

LATICS: De La Paz, Hunt, Edmundson, Clarke, Taylor; Lang, Missilou (Maouche 88), Gardner, Branger-Engone (Benteke 90); Surridge, O’Grady (Baxter 75). Subs (not used): McFarlane, Graham, Stott, Hamer.

NEWPORT: Day, Pipe, Butler, Franks, Dolan, Amond, Matt (Marsh-Brown 75), Bakinson, Sheehan (O’Brien 84), Bennett, Demetriou. Subs (not used): Townsend, Pring, Forbes, Crofts, Cooper. Booked: Franks, Butler.

Attendance: 4,293 (259 away).