Cobblers injury news - latest on McGeehan, Fornah, Forbes, McCarthy and new signing Moore
Cameron McGeehan and Conor McCarthy are both back in training but Michael Forbes and Tyrese Fornah remain sidelined, while new signing Elliott Moore will not feature against Walsall in the EFL Trophy.
McGeehan and McCarthy should play some part in Wednesday’s last-16 tie at Sixfields after missing Town’s 0-0 draws with Stockport and Bolton, however Fornah and Forbes need more time to recover. Moore was without a club for several months after leaving Oxford in September and is therefore short on match fitness.
"The injury situation is looking better,” said Kevin Nolan. “Cameron McGeehan and Conor McCarthy are training with us. Forbesy and Ty will maybe need another week or two but we're managing them day by day. It’ll be a couple of weeks before we see Elliott in a matchday squad. We’re not going to rush him because once we have him fully fit, we want him to stay fit and be available for the rest of the season.”
With no game at the weekend, Nolan and his players made full use of a much-needed opportunity to rest following the busy Christmas schedule.
"It was nice to get through the Christmas period and have a bit of a breather,” Nolan added. “I obviously wasn’t too impressed with the EFL because I felt they were harsh on us and it was a tough one having three away games.
"It didn’t start well with the Burton game where we made some really bad individual errors and then Huddersfield was always going to be tough, especially after losing Cam and Ethan (Wheatley) in the first 20 minutes. The lads then turned out two massive performances against Stockport and Bolton and we could have nicked both games.
"I’m really pleased with how the lads have come back and now it’s about this week because we have two big home games. It was nice to have a bit of a rest and the players spent time with their families but it’s always good to get back to it.”