Nolan leaves the door open for impressive loan trio to return to Cobblers next season

The impressive loan trio have all played significant roles during the second half of the season to help keep Cobblers in League One after joining the club in the January transfer window.

Costelloe, a lively, hard-working striker signed from Burnley, finished the season with six goals in 15 appearances, while Taylor has started all-but one game since arriving from Charlton, consistently starring in midfield, and Nottingham Forest’s Perry stepped up superbly after Liam Shaw’s season-ending knee injury.

The three all started against Wigan in Saturday’s final day draw with Wigan, and it’s not beyond the realms of possibility that one, two or potentially all three could be back for the 2025/26 League One season.

"The three loan lads who started today have all contributed to getting us to where we are,” said Nolan “They've been fantastic and I'm delighted with all three of them. I've spoken to them individually and thanked them for their efforts. Hopefully we might see them back here next year.

"If not, we have to find the next one and then the next one after that. There's work to do but it's work that I'm looking forward to and that's why we're here. We've built a good relationship with Forest and also with Burnley and we're building those relationships to make sure we get the best young talent and hopefully they want us to be part of their development. I think all three go back to their parent clubs as better players.”

It was a sad end for Perry and Taylor as both limped off with injuries in the second half of Saturday’s 1-1 draw. Perry needed lengthy treatment after a nasty clash of heads while Taylor appeared to suffer some kind of leg injury following a challenge in his own penalty area.

"I'm not too sure with Terry,” Nolan added. “He just felt something. We don't want to be sending players back with injuries and that's the same for Ben who had a nasty cut on his head. I told them to get him off and get it seen to as quickly as possible. It's important we look after them so they go back to their clubs in full health.”