Moloney confident goals will soon start to flow for Cobblers

Town travel to Portsmouth in the Checkatrade Trophy second round on Saturday (ko 12.30pm), having not scored for more than 400 minutes

They drew a blank in two games with Scunthorpe United, and also against the bottom two in Sky Bet League One, Plymouth Argyle and Bury, but Moloney feels the tide is soon going to turn.

Town have certainly created presentable chances in all of those games without converting, particularly in last weekend’s 0-0 draw with Bury, and the Irishman said: “Sometimes the chances just don’t go in, but the thing is we are getting in the right positions.

“If we weren’t getting in the right positions and there was nobody there, then that would be the time to worry.

“But the strikers are getting in there and getting their head on things, and it is only a matter of time before it drops, because we have good finishers at the club and good attacking players.”

It could be that Saturday’s trip to Fratton Park will offer the Cobblers the chance to throw off the shackles and attack with a bit more freedom, as it is a Checkatrade Trophy game.

There has to be a winner on the day, and Moloney admits he and the Town team are looking forward to the clash in what is a much-maligned competition.

Especially as there is the carrot of a Wembley final down the line.

“Cup runs are always good, and this game is a bit of a distraction from the league,” said the right-back.

“In the Checkatrade Trophy, there is a nice reward at the end of it if you go all the way because you get to Wembley and that is great for the club and the fans.

“It will be a great competition to progress in, and we are looking forward to the game.

“We are going down to play at a nice stadium and in front of a big crowd, and it should be a good game.”

Town have already taken on Pompey in league one this season, winning 3-1 at Sixfields in September, and Moloney said: “We played Portsmouth here in one of the first games here under the new manager and we picked up a good win, so if we can do that again then we will all be happy.

“They are doing really well, they are a big club and they are up there in and around the play-offs so it will be a tough place to go.

“But every game is tough, there are no easy ones, every team is competitive but we will go there with confidence from last weekend’s performance against Bury.”

And he added: “There have been a lot of good performances this season, that haven’t been backed up by the results.

“Don’t get me wrong, we weren’t happy with the Plymouth performance, but going back a little while ago we lost a couple of games 1-0 where we played really well.

“It is disheartening when you come off the pitch with no points having played well, but on Saturday we should have won. It wasn’t to be, but if we keep doing that we will win more games than we lose.

“The spirits are high in the camp even though the results have gone against us, and we remain positive.”

Moloney is set to come up against an old team-mate in Danny Rose.

The midfielder was part of the Cobblers’ 2015/16 title winning team, playing a key role after signing from Oxford United in the January transfer window.

The Manchester United youth product was one of a clutch of players that opted to leave the club at the end of that campaign, heading to Pompey where he helped them to the title last season, and Moloney is looking forward to seeing him - and perhaps leaving his mark on his old pal!

“I know Rosey well from his time here, and he did really well for us because he is a good player,” said the Irishman.

“We know all about him, so I might give him a little dig if I end up in a tackle with him!”