We preview Saturday's trip to Northampton...
Northampton Town FC
Sky Bet League 2
Saturday 22nd November
Sixfields Stadium, Northampton, NN5 5QA
Kick-off: 3pm
Ticket news:
Tickets are now off sale at in-advance prices, tickets are available on the day at the turnstiles and the prices are as follows:
Adult: £22
Over 65: £18
Under 18: £10
Under 7: FREE!
Team news:
Difficult to say who will be available after last night’s game in the FA Cup. With Adam Marriott and Chris Beardsley out through injury, Lee Barnard is the only recognised striker available for the game, not counting Darius Charles. Over the next 24 hours the fitness of the players will be monitored following the Maidstone game.
Last season…
Northampton *just* survived relegation from the Football League last season as they finished 3 points clear of the drop, with their future in balance all the way until the final day of the season. With the club bottom of the table in late December, Aidy Boothroyd was sacked as manager and Andy King took over in temporary charge for a month. When it was announced that Chris Wilder would leave Oxford United for Northampton, many were shocked as he left the U’s in a great position to gain promotion. Wilder didn’t quite make the impact many were hoping, however two wins in their final two games secured safety and the opportunity to re-build this season.
The story so far…
It’s been a patchy start for the Cobblers, currently in 17th place on 21 points. Northampton were 5th in the table earlier on in the season and looking like strong challengers for the automatic promotion spots, however a dip in form since then has seen them slip down the table. In their last seven league games, Northampton have only won once, losing five games. Four of those defeats came on the bounce during October, a costly month for the club.
Recent form:
Last time we met...
Boro last met Northampton in May 2011, with only two games to go until the end of the season. The two clubs were at the opposite ends of the table and needing points for different reasons. Northampton needing a win to secure safety, whilst Boro were challenging for a play-off spot. In what was a raucous affair, Stevenage lost 2-0 and had two men sent off, both Luke Foster and Jon Mousinho seeing red.
You can watch the highlights from this game inside the Boro Player archive.
Betting with SkyBet:
Stevenage are outsiders on Saturday at 11/4 for the win, meaning a £10 bet will return you £37.50. Despite only playing on Thursday, The Cobblers league form is much worse than our own so there’s potential for some value there. Lee Barnard is favourite to be first goalscorer at 6/1 with Chris Whelpdale at 7s and Roarie Deacon at 9/1.
Not going to the game?
Listen to live match commentary on the Boro Player service where you'll also find full match highlights and full post-match interviews on Sunday. We'll also be providing live minute-by-minute updates on our Twitter account, with the key incidents reported live on our Facebook page. The best match day photos will be posted on the club's Instagram account whilst short highlights of the game will be on our YouTube page on Sunday.