FA Cup prize money means Curle will be more 'selective' in transfer market

Town picked up nearly £250,000 in prize money for beating Chippenham Town, Notts County and Burton Albion in the first three rounds.

They then pocketed an extra £150,000 in TV money after their fourth-round clash against Derby County was selected as one of four ties to be shown live on BT Sport.

Cobblers are still in talks with their transfer targets this month but they are yet to make a signing since the window opened and while Curle says the money is a 'boost' for the club, he is in no hurry to splash the cash.

"It's obviously a boost," he said. "When you go shopping you want to go with money and not credit.

"That's a situation that comes from good housekeeping and then what you find is, when you go shopping with more money, you become more selective.

"That's where we're at at the moment. We want to spend money but if we want to invest, we want to invest wisely and that's what we're trying to do."

As well as the financial rewards, Town's success in this season's FA Cup has also been a major positive on the pitch, plus in the stands, with the bond between players, fans and manager growing all the time.

"It's vitally important that as a manager at a club you feel as if you belong and that's not just down to the supporters, it's down to the players and the staff," said Curle after the victory over Burton Albion.

"The infrastructure at the club makes you feel comfortable but also part of the upward curve that you want the club to go on and that's important as a manager.

"At the start of the season I had a meeting with a couple of supports who showed a bit of discontent and were a bit disgruntled.

"I invited them to come and see me and I gave them an understanding of what I was about, how I see my role in the club and the value I put on their support.

"Some people may not like how I manage or how the team plays but what they do like is a winning football team and it can help a lot when the team is winning."