Hayden Mullins says Newport County found out about Shaquille Gwengwe's three-match ban for violent conduct while travelling to their League Two fixture with Rotherham United.

The 25-year-old striker made the trip to South Yorkshire but ultimately missed the 2-2 draw with the Millers after admitting to a charge of violent conduct during his side's 1-1 draw with York City on Saturday.

Boss Mullins - who revealed Gwengwe was expected to feature against Alex Bruce's side prior to the club's decision to accept the charge - described the length of the ban as "really harsh".

"It came out of the blue this morning, which was bad timing, on the day of the game," Mullins told BBC Radio Wales.

"We'd been notified that Shaq has been given a three-match suspension for something that happened on the weekend.

"If we appealed, then obviously I think there's further ramifications if we lose it.

"We had to make a decision this afternoon. We planned for Shaq to be involved tonight, and he was with us."

The ban means Gwengwe will also be unavailable for Newport's upcoming league matches at Cheltenham Town on Saturday (12:30 BST) and at home to Chesterfield on Friday, 30 October (19:45 BST).

"I think it's really harsh for a three-match ban. Honestly, I really do," added Mullins.

"It's bad luck really because Shaq's an important player for us."

Gwenge - who joined the Exiles from Poole Town during the summer transfer window - has netted five goals in 10 league outings for Newport so far this season.

His prolific nature is evidenced by the fact his five goals in League Two have come from an expected goals (XG) figure of just 2.16.

It means he has outperformed his XG by 2.84, a figure that - prior to game week 12 - only Cheltenham Town's Charlie McCann (3.62) had bettered in the fourth tier.

Despite Gwengwe's absence, Newport came from two goals behind to earn a 2-2 draw with Rotherham.

The hosts led through early goals from Paul Mullin and Aaron Nemane at AESSEAL New York Stadium.

But a Harrison Biggins penalty along with Ged Garner's first league goal of the campaign ensured Newport stretched their unbeaten league run to seven matches.

"We're happy with the point. It keeps our belief going and our unbeaten run going," added Mullins.

"We're really disappointed with the first half, that start is out of character for us and we addressed it at half time.

"One thing I spoke about at the end of the game was our character, our togetherness and how we keep fighting.

"At the end we were getting stronger. It looked like we had a bit more energy towards the end and we were almost pushing to get the winner which was good. It's pleasing to see."