Cobblers boss Wilder delighted by Martin impact

Having already built a formidable-looking squad at Sixfields this season, Wilder boosted his options further by bringing in Martin on loan from Millwall just a week after signing Shrewsbury striker James Collins.

And the former Manchester United man needed no time to make his mark with a lively and influential performance on his home debut against Morecambe.

After missing two early scoring opportunities, Martin eventually played his part in a goal five minutes after the restart when his corner was nodded home by Rod McDonald which sealed a convincing victory following first-half strikes from James Collins and John-Joe O’Toole.

“Lee has been with us for a week now and I think he’s showed why we’ve brought him to the football club,” said Wilder following Saturday’s win.

“He came straight into the dressing room last Saturday so it was a bit of a gamble to play him but he’s good enough and we’ve seen his quality.

“He’s a positive player, he’s nice and bright and he fits in with how we want to play. He doesn’t play in straight lines - he moves around the pitch.

“We’ve got Ricky (Holmes) and Lee and then we’ve got Nicky Adams, Lawson (D’Ath) and Alfie (Potter) to come back in.

“A couple of them are suffering a little bit with injuries and it’s a tough, punishing season so we needed the freshness of Lee to come in and James Collins to come in and I think they’ve really bolstered the squad and have played a part in a pretty convincing home performance and a home win.

“Ricky was also nice and bright and Collins and Richards are an handful for any two centre-backs in this league.”

The destination of the three points was rarely in doubt on Saturday with Northampton easing to victory thanks to a dominant performance

“I thought we started off really well,” added Wilder. “I thought we dominated possession, we moved the ball about really well and I can’t remember them really having any opportunities.

“But we had to be careful of the counter-attack and the one ball over the top.

“As I said at half-time, it was us who were going to lose this game. No disrespect to the opposition but they were not going to do anything fantastic on us and we were the ones who were going to let this slip.

“But we’ve got three goals at home and another win and another three points and it was big game for us.”