Kelvin Langmead hails ‘outstanding’ ex-Northampton Town midfielder who starred in Banbury United’s final home game

Abimbola, a Northampton Town academy graduate who racked up 10 senior appearances for the Cobblers before joining Banbury last July, enjoyed a stellar afternoon at the Spencer Stadium.

It may have been a 0-0 stalemate but Abimbola made his presence known, getting stuck into challenges and working hard to get involved in both boxes in an advanced midfield role.

That wasn’t easy against a play-off chasing Redditch side, especially as Abimbola was making his first start in several matches.

“It’s a good point, they (Redditch) are a decent side right up near the top for a reason,” Langmead told Puritans Radio.

“We shifted our formation a little bit, we went back to our 4-1-4-1 that we've been doing a lot of the season.

“Pete (Abimbola) being available allowed us to do that. He was absolutely outstanding today, considering he’s not played for a few weeks.

“His energy and his desire to get back onto the pitch was incredible. To get 90 minutes out of him as well, it’s a huge plus for us.”

Banbury were in need of a response after being thrashed 4-0 by the relegation-threatened Stamford AFC four days earlier, so a 0-0 draw with the play-off chasing Redditch was welcomed by supporters.

“We needed a reaction,” Langmead added. “I didn’t say too much (in the dressing room) before the game, I shouldn’t need to after a result like Tuesday night.

“It should be self-motivation; you shouldn’t need anyone in there to rev them up. What happened the other night should have hurt them like it hurt me and everyone connected to the football club.

“It was important for themselves. With Redditch, and don’t take this the wrong way, I didn’t care what they did and how they set up; it was all about us today.

“It was important how we went about our work, how we kept our discipline, how we kept our shape. Credit to the lads, they did that.”