Curle believes Korboa can make the step up to thrive in League One

Ricky Korboa did enough in pre-season to earn himself a contract.

Cobblers boss Keith Curle believes Ricky Korboa has all the attributes to make the step up to League One this season.

The 23-year-old forward signed from tier seven side Carshalton Athletic on Tuesday following three weeks on trial with the club.

Korboa has never previously played professional football but Curle has been impressed by his attitude in pre-season and is confident he'll make the step up.

"He's somebody that got flagged up by our recruitment network so we monitored him and then invited him into the club," said Curle.

"From the first day he came in, there was something about the lad that I liked in terms of his demeanour and his personality and he's brought that onto the training pitch and into the games.

"The lad has got a hunger about him that has impressed me and he's able to take on information. He wants to improve and he wants to get the best out of himself so we've provided a platform to see how far he can go on his journey.

"When he gets the other side of you, you're not going to catch him! He has an excellent work ethic and his understanding of football is getting better and better with the level of coaching he's getting.

"It all starts with him being willing to learn and take information onboard, but he's also given the freedom to go and express himself and that's what's exciting because he's getting a lot of 'well dones' for things he's doing naturally.

"We don't want to take that away from him. He has roles and responsibility in and out of possession but we want him to play his natural game because he will go past people and he will scare people with his pace and his dynamics and the lad can also finish.

Korboa came on trial at the start of pre-season and has featured in all of Town's friendlies.

"He hasn't been fazed," added Curle. "He's coming into a club that's just won promotion but he's settled very, very well and we don't want to take his unpredictability and his hunger away from him.

"He's not fazed by anybody, which is what I like, and the welcoming environment we have here has made it easy for him to adapt and adjust and I think that's a sign of a good football club when players come in and feel welcome."