Former title-winning defender could be back for Carlisle as big crowd awaits Cobblers at Brunton Park

Cobblers could come up against former title-winning defender Rod McDonald this weekend.

The Carlisle United centre-back has been out with a calf problem but returned to training this weekend and could be in contention for tomorrow's game.

“We’ve got Rod McDonald and Brennan Dickenson back, and hopefully Gime Toure and Kelvin Mellor will be back over the next few weeks as well," said manager Paul Simpson.

“They’re all getting closer. I’ve got a decision to make as to whether it’s too early for Brennan and Rod for this weekend, but they’re definitely coming into my thinking.

“They’ve trained this week with us, they trained at the end of last week, they both look in a good place. They’re certainly not right to start the game but it’s whether they come into the 18, just to get them back into it, which would be really harsh on somebody else that might miss out.

“But we’ve got no time for being sentimental with people at the moment. It's about putting the strongest 18 out to try and affect the game. So I’ve got a decision to make over the next few days on those two."

Carlisle are expecting their biggest crowd of the season this weekend as the club looks to take advantage of their recent good form and the buzz generated by Simpson's appointment.

“It should be a brilliant atmosphere,” Simpson added. “Some of the lads probably haven’t played in a crowd as big as we’ll get on Saturday.

“They’ve obviously all played in front of decent crowds but I hope they’re like me. I used to dream about playing in front of a positive crowd who got right behind you and I hope the players rise to that on Saturday. That’s what gets your adrenaline going, when you come down the tunnel and you hear that noise, the butterflies start, but that’s good.

“If they’re able to channel that in the right way, I’m sure it will be a positive response for them. They need to make sure they come out and do their first thing right to build themselves into the game, build the atmosphere and the positivity, then everything should take care of itself after that.”