Cobblers waiting on Fox's fitness after midfielder is spotted on crutches

Cobblers are yet to discover the full extent of Ben Fox’s ankle injury after the midfielder was spotted on crutches before Saturday’s game against his old club Grimsby Town.

The 25-year-old injured himself when making a full-blooded defensive challenge during last Tuesday’s goalless draw with AFC Wimbledon. He initially tried to carry on but struggled to put any weight on his foot and had to make way for Jack Sowerby.

Unsurprisingly, Fox did not feature in the squad for Saturday’s fixture at Sixfields and was seen on crutches before and after the game, however that does not necessarily indicate a serious injury, with manager Jon Brady not yet sure how long he will be out for.

"Ben has had an X-ray and that was all clear but we are waiting for an MRI scan,” said Brady. “It's pretty sore at the moment so I don't know how long that's going to be.”

Brady did not go into detail but he said that one player might ‘potentially’ return from injury in time for next weekend’s game at Colchester United.

Cobblers currently have six players unavailable due to injury, with Kieron Bowie, Danny Hylton, Lee Burge, Akin Odimayo and Ryan Haynes joining Fox on the sidelines.

Aaron McGowan returned to the bench against Grimsby following a month out and Shaun McWilliams was fit enough to come on as a substitute after injuring himself in last Tuesday’s draw with Wimbledon.