LIKE Stevenage’s most famous son Lewis Hamilton in qualifying for the Chinese Grand Prix and the Argus Vauxhall Corsa, Newport County AFC never got started on Saturday.

Hamilton battled from the back of the grid to claim seventh place at the Shanghai International Circuit.

I battled the M25 traffic in my trusty Toyota Yaris to make it to Broadhall Way.

And County will eventually win their war against relegation from the Football League, probably as soon as Tuesday night, but they didn’t look up for the battle on Saturday.

Manager Warren Feeney questioned the mentality of his players, suggesting they lacked hunger and desire as they slumped to a sixth straight defeat.

That’s the club’s worst run of form in the league since 2005 – worse even than Terry Butcher managed at the start of the season.

After four successive blanks and 535 minutes of football, the 150-odd travelling fans did at least see a goal from their side as Alex Rodman thumped home on 87 minutes.

But some supporters didn’t even have that consolation as they’d walked out and got back on the motorway at half-time.

As someone who once witnessed Arsenal come back from 4-0 down to win a bonkers Capital One Cup tie at Reading 7-5 after extra-time, I know it’s never advisable to give up after 45 minutes.

But on this occasion it’s hard to blame those who did make an early exit.

Feeney’s men were so woeful that the game was effectively lost after 33 minutes and it could easily have been 5-0 to the hosts by half-time.

Poor Ben Davies, who had just about recovered from his mauling by Gwion Edwards at Crawley Town on March 1, was hauled off after 38 minutes as Tom Pett ran riot on the right wing.

With Scott Barrow missing through injury, Davies got no help from Medy Elito or John-Christophe Ayina but he simply couldn’t handle the Stevenage winger.

Pett had already created two chances before he bamboozled Davies and crossed for Jake Mulraney to bundle in at the far post on nine minutes.

Mulraney, on loan from Queens Park Rangers, almost curled in a second soon afterwards before a former County hero turned heartbreaker.

Aaron O’Connor had already hooked one shot over the bar from close range before he found the top corner with a superb finish on 33 minutes.

Dean Parrett wriggled away from Mark Byrne and drew Darren Jones into a lunging tackle before slipping the ball sideways to O’Connor, who expertly executed a controlled slice past Andrew Hughes and Joe Day.

Elito could have seen red for the third time this season as he seemed to bring down Pett in the box before the break and the game was up, despite an improved second half showing from County.

In truth, they could hardly have been worse after the break.

Byrne went close, substitute Souleymane Coulibaly should have done better with a header and fellow sub Scott Boden could have had a penalty in stoppage time after Rodman had slammed home Elito’s cross three minutes from the end.

But anything less than three points for Stevenage would have been a grave injustice.

Anything less than three points for York City at home to Portsmouth on Tuesday night will mean they join Dagenham & Redbridge in the Conference.

County will be safe no matter how they fare at home to promotion-chasing Oxford United.

But, as Feeney begins to plan for next season, there are few players making a compelling case for a new contract.

And, if the current run continues, the manager himself will have a lot to prove to his critics.

County: Day; Holmes, Jones, Hughes, Davies (Donacien, 38); Rodman, Byrne, O’Sullivan (Boden, 46), Elito, Ayina; John-Lewis (Coulibaly, 67)

Subs not used: Green, Klukowski, Morgan, Partridge

Booked: Holmes, Jones, Elito

Referee: Iain Williamson

Attendance: 2,673