In the first half, the hosts went ahead through Josh Sheehan but Chris Porter's penalty levelled things up after Kurtis Guthrie was fouled.
Neither side could claim a winner in the second period, and the final whistle went with Newport stopping their run of defeats and the U's extending their unbeaten run to nine matches.
Unsurprisingly, John McGreal named an unchanged line-up – having seen his side beat top three side Carlisle United seven days ago.
The game started with both sides getting used to the irregular bounce of the pitch, and it was the U’s who got to grip with things quicker.
On four minutes, Craig Slater got clear on the right and his cross was put over the bar with Brennan Dickenson challenging Pipe, with the home defender getting the final touch.
U’s forward Chris Porter vainly appealed for a penalty in the fifteenth minute, but the referee deemed the contact insignificant as Porter was poised to shoot.
At the other end, Sam Walker was retrieving the ball from his net as his first meaningful involvement in the game.
It came on twenty two minutes, with Josh Sheehan’s shot spinning past him after a deflection into the far corner following a long throw on Newport’s right.
The goal galvanised the hosts but clear chances weren’t forthcoming for Graham Westley’s men, despite them looking the best team for ten minutes.
Williams turned and shot but this deflection took the ball straight into Walker’s arms.
That chance came on thirty two minutes and the U’s were level sixty seconds later, with Porter scoring from the penalty spot.
Owen Garvan’s cleve ball saw the Newport defence turning towards their own goal, Kurtis Guthrie beat Nelson in the air and then was fouled by the same player as he made his way into the box.
The referee pointed to the spot immediately and Porter calmly sent Joe Day the wrong way to level things up at 1-1.
Five minutes before the break, Garvan’s cross was headed straight at Day and within seconds, Walker was making a decent save at the other end, after Day’s clearance was volleyed goalwards by Williams.
That was the last goalmouth action of the first half, and the scores being level was probably right at the break.
The second period started in similar fashion to the first, with both sides looking to settle into things on a difficult pitch.
And it took until the fifty seventh minutes for the first real chance – and it came for the U’s.
Guthrie and Porter combined well and the latter’s cross looked a dangerous one but was well defended by O’Brien on the edge of his own six yard box.
Three minutes later, good play on the right by Brindley, Guthrie and Garvan ended with Dickenson drilling a shot well wide of the target.
Walker was in action on sixty three minutes, but he made it look routine despite the shot from Reid coming sharply to him through Tom Eastman’s legs.
The U’s keeper then made a fantastic stop, tipping over a clever curler from dangerman and scorer of Newport’s goal Sheehan.
The home side were putting the U’s under pressure at this stage of the game but in a break down the right, on seventy one minutes, Guthrie’s shot was deflected wide.
Reid then shot straight at Walker as Newport went for a winner, looking to end their run of eight consecutive defeats.
Denny Johnstone and Tarique Fosu were introduced as John McGreal tried to find a winner for his own team, but neither side could get a second goal.
The final whistle went with the hosts ending that run of defeats and the U’s extending their unbeaten run to nine games.