Justin Edinburgh has warned his players and the Cobblers supporters not to get ‘distracted’ as Ricky Holmes makes his first return to Sixfields since leaving the club last summer.

One of the star players in Town’s imperious march towards the Sky Bet League Two title last season, Holmes’s return with Charlton Athletic is sure to grab plenty of attention on Saturday, but Edinburgh is only interested in one thing - claiming three precious league points.

Holmes was a main man and scored a series of stunning goals as the Cobblers romped to the league two title by 13 points last May, but following manager Chris Wilder’s decision to quit the club for Sheffield United, the player was sold to the Addicks for an undisclosed fee.

The majority of Town supporters didn’t begrudge the player his move to The Valley, although some weren’t happy, and he is likely to provoke a reaction, good or bad, when he strides out on his old stomping ground this weekemnd.

And although Edinburgh accepts Cobblers supporters arelikely to want to show their appreciation towards the player, he wants it restricted to pre and post match.

“I know that Ricky Holmes played a huge part in the promotion last year, but let’s not get distracted,” said the Town manager.

“I am fully aware of him, we will have to be mindful of him, but we have to think first and foremost about ourselves.

“There is no sentiment in football, for me there should be no homecoming, it is about Northampton.

“It’s irrelevant. The crowd can appreciate Ricky before the game and after it, but for me he is the opposition, and we need to beat them.

“That is the way I will approach it, and the points are more important to us than a welcoming for Ricky Holmes.”

Police remain at the scene of a crash involving a van and a car on the A43.

Officers were called to the A43 Stamford Road near Priors Hall Golf Course in Corby just after midday today (Friday).

The air ambulance as well as fire and ambulance crews also attended the crash involving a white Fiat and a Doblo Cargo van.

A police spokesman said that officers remain at the scene and work is being carried out by the highways team to clear away oil on the road.

No further details about the crash or any injuries are currently available.

A man was leaving Morrisons in Kettering Road, on January 17 when his credit card was stolen.

Money was subsequently taken from the associated account.

Witnesses can contact police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 111 555.

Police are appealing for help to find a missing man from Yardley Gobion, near Towcester.

Peter Hastings, 62, was last seen at about 9.30am on Friday March 3, and officers are concerned for his welfare.

Mr Hastings is described as white, about 5ft 11in, with grey short hair and blue eyes. His clothing is not known but he may have been wearing a red coat.

Anyone who may have seen Peter or has any information as to his whereabouts is asked to contact Northamptonshire Police on 101.

The 89-year-old man was walking along Oliver Street between 12.45pm and 1pm when another man stopped him and asked for the time, to which he responded and continued walking.

A short time later the same man walked past him and took his wallet from his jacket pocket before running off along Oliver Street and onto Kingsley Park Terrace.

A Northamptonshire Police spokeswoman said: "The offender is described as a 6ft, 30-year-old white man, wearing a yellow or pink woolly hat."

Witnesses can contact police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 111 555.

Northampton council chiefs spent £570,000 investigating flytipping over the last four years, but just how much justice did they dispense?

New Government statistics show that flytipping incidents in the Northampton Borough Council area have risen from 7,575 to 12,288 over the last four years.

The cost of clearing up after the tippers set back taxpayers nearly £570,015 last year.

But the stats have revealed no fines were handed to the litterbugs.

That figure includes spending £7,000 on small van load clearances and £89,000 on clearances with tipper lorries.

While some areas such as Sunderland, Lewes, Lancaster and South Lakeland saw the amount of flytipping incidents falls by almost three-quarters over the four years since 2012, others told a different story.

In Hackney, London, there was tenfold increase in flytipping, from 599 incidents to 6,917 in just four years.

Saints produced a superb away performance to end their AJ Bell Stadium hoodoo in style on Friday night.

Jim Mallinder's men scored four times to earn a bonus-point 32-12 victory, which was their first in the league at Sale since November, 2012.

Michael Paterson scored against his former club, with he and Mike Haywood, who bagged his eighth try of the season, adding to Ken Pisi's opener.

And prop Ethan Waller powered over in the final play of the game to secure the maximum haul.

Stephen Myler kicked 12 points to put gloss on an impressive display from Mallinder's men, who cemented sixth spot and moved to just three points behind Leicester Tigers in the Aviva Premiership standings.

Sale struggled to produce any fireworks in front of their home fans, and they only had efforts from Josh Charnley and Bryn Evans to show for their efforts.

Saints were always in control of the game after Pisi's 28th-minute try and they built on it to bag a brilliant and crucial league win.

Sale had applied plenty of early pressure, continually kicking to the corner in pursuit of an early try.

Saints were shipping penalties, but they managed to hold out before Denny Solomona almost caught them cold with a quick break and a couple of kicks ahead.

The opening 25 minutes were nip and tuck, with the game largely played in the middle of the pitch.

Both teams were probing for openings and it was Saints who struck first after the ball fell in their favour.

Ben Foden picked up the bouncing ball and after the it was worked wide, with Harry Mallinder playing a key final pass, Pisi pounced to open the scoring.

Myler missed the conversion from out wide, but Saints were to grab another try before the break.

Lock Paterson popped up and stretched out and arm to dot down against his former club.

Myler converted and the half was suddenly going swimmingly for Saints, but they weren't able to hold out as Sale responded before the break.

Wing Charnley latched on to a kick ahead to score, with Sam James converting to cut the Saints lead to five points.

But Myler slotted a penalty with the final kick of the half to make it an eight-point gap at the interval.

The second half started with both sides struggling to keep hold of the slippery ball in attack, giving the defences some respite after spells of pressure.

But Saints managed to put together a big drive from a lineout, with Haywood the man on the end of it.

It was turning into an accomplished away display from Saints, with Myler again adding the extras and Mallinder's men now hunting the bonus point.

They soon had another three points to their name as after the forwards smashed Sale in the scrum, Myler slotted the penalty from in front of the posts.

Sale needed some hope and lock Evans provided it as he put his head down and charged towards the line to score.

The conversion was missed, leaving Sale 25-12 down with 11 minutes to go, and the home side couldn't produce anything else of note.

Fittingly, Saints had the final word as Myler's inside pass found replacement Waller, who made his way over the line for the crucial bonus-point score.

Myler converted to put the seal on a hugely impressive performance.

Sale Sharks: Haley (McGuigan 57); Solomona, Leota, Jennings, Charnley; James, Phillips (Stringer 25); Harrison (Flynn 68), Webber, Aulika (Longbottom 68); Evans, Mills (Nott 57); Neild (B Curry 59), Lund (T Curry 49), Beaumont (c).

Saints: Tuala; K Pisi, Tuitavake (Estelles 61), Mallinder, Foden (c); Myler, Groom (Dickson 71); A Waller (E Waller 71), Haywood (Clare 75), Brookes (Hill 61); Paterson (Ratuniyarawa 75), Craig; Gibson, Clark (Dickinson 66), Harrison.

Referee: Tom Foley

Jim Mallinder says Saints' win at Sale was 'without doubt' their best on the road this season.

Tries from Ken Pisi, Michael Paterson, Mike Haywood and Ethan Waller earned an impressive 32-12 away success.

It was Saints' fourth victory on their travels this season, adding to successes at Bristol, Worcester and Gloucester, and it cemented sixth spot in the Aviva Premiership table.

Mallinder's men are now three points behind fifth-placed Leicester Tigers, who they face in their next league fixture, at Franklin's Gardens on March 25.

And Saints will be able to go into that game buoyed by their most complete performance of the campaign.

"We got our game plan right," Mallinder said.

"I thought our half-backs were very good with Stephen Myler in particular putting us into some good positions on the field.

"We defended very well and it was the icing on the cake getting the bonus point at the end."

Saints had not won at Sale in the league since November, 2012, and when asked whether this was his side's best away victory of the season, Mallinder said: "It is, without a doubt.

"It is hard to come here and that was a good win.

"We closed down their threats and they did try to play probably a little bit too much, but their kicking game didn't really threaten us.

"Our back three coped very well in the conditions."

A Northampton World War Two veteran has been awarded his service medals after 73 years.

George Verden, 94, flew 49 missions in his RAF career and took part in crucial bombing operations on D-Day, earning him two medals.

But when the war was over, he found he had lost the slip of paper proving his valour.

Mr Verden said: "This slip was the only proof I had. But I couldn't find it all."

It would be over 70 years before George would get his medals. But then he discovered he can claim a third - and very exclusive - third medal.

He joined the RAF in 1941 when he was 18-years-old.

"I couldn't swim, so I didn't join the navy. But I had wanted to fly since I was a youngster, so I volunteered for the Royal Air Force.

"I was a wireless operator air gunner," said George. "I had to crawl across the bomb boy to use the radio, then crawl back again to man my machine-gun in the tail of the plane.

"Your life expectancy in bomber command back then was four trips. Then you were on borrowed time. We lost more air crew than any other force, and for every 1,000 bombers you sent up you lost 100."

By D-Day, the start of the allied campaign to retake Normandy and bring the war to an end, George had flown 22 operations.

He and his crew were tasked with bombing runs to secure a key strategic point known as Pegasus Bridge, in Caen, France.

"D-Day was alright," George said. "Everyone was frightened, but as you got closer to the coast you realised you had a job to do. So you did it and then you flew back home.

"Sometimes we came home with bullet holes in the kite [plane]. On the worst occasion, a flak shell exploded underneath us and lifted us all into the air. Thankfully, no one was hurt."

Twenty days into the D-Day campaign, Warrant Officer George Verden was given a slip of paper by a commanding officer. He had earned two medals for his service: the Air Crew Europe Star, for flying over occupied Europe, and the France & Germany Star, for subjects of the British Commonwealth who served in the Second World War.

But when the war ended and Mr Verden returned home, he could not find his slip of paper.

He would not see it again for 73 years.

He said: "It's been preying on my mind for all these years. Now I'm getting older, I thought I would have one last go at finding it.

"And then, in December 2016, there it was, in amongst all my old service kit. And when I saw it, I thought, 'I'll have you.'"

Mr Verden contacted his MP Michael Ellis and asked for his help.

Michael Ellis, MP for Northampton North, said: "George had this slip of paper, no bigger than a receipt from a supermarket, that proved he was owed these medals. It took some work but my team and I were very keen to help. We spoke to the Ministry of Defence and the Medals office. With some research, we showed he was entitled to his medals.

"But what is even more incredible is that we found George could, if he wanted to, claim a third medal - the Legion d'Honneur, or the Legion of Honour, France's highest order for military and civil merits."

Mr Verden has now claimed his two long-awaited medals.

He said: "I'm lucky to get them. The slip was in my kit book the entire time, along with a fabric map that went with me on every air raid. I'm so pleased to have them at last.

"I would never have got them if not for my MP, Michael Ellis, and I 'm so grateful to him."

Michael Ellis said: "I'm absolutely thrilled. He;s clearly a hero and someone who served his country so very well throughout his life to achieve these medals.

"He may well have received them this week but he's deserved them all these years. I want to thank him for his service."

A Northampton dad will try to wipe out a long-standing Guinness World Record for the world's fastest window cleaner.

Ashley Mackintosh, director of family business AE Mackintosh Cleaning Services, will compete in the window-cleaning competition at London’s Cleaning Show in two weeks.

He will try to beat the 20-year record maintained by Terry 'Turbo' Burrows, who cleaned three 1.143m high windows in 9.14 seconds in 2009. This was a tenth of a second faster than his previous best time set four years earlier.

Mr Mackintosh, 32, from Hunsbury, has been a window cleaner for 20 years.

He said: "I first saw Terry break the record on BBC's Record Breakers and I loved seeing him work. I never knew then that I would be a window cleaner but it will be great just to meet him.

"I'm more of a thorough window cleaner than a fast one, but I'm still pretty fast. I don't know my average time but I will need to put all my twenty years of experience into the challenge if I'm going to beat his record.

"It is a great opportunity pick up some tips on speed and technique and would be incredible to think that the world record could be brought to my hometown of Northampton.”

There is a £250 cash prize for the winner of the daily competition at the Cleaning Show at ExCeL London, at the Royal Victoria Dock, East London, from March 14 -16, and a chance to enter the history books as the world's fastest window cleaner.

Terry 'Turbo' Burrows, from Essex, said: “As a former martial arts instructor and boxer I managed to perfect a rapid 16-move sequence which is very hard to copy if you don’t have the core strength, flexibility, fast hands and reflexes.

“However, unlike the early days when I first started competing, now you can study my technique via clips on YouTube, and each year a new generation of cleaners come along to try and beat me.

“Maybe this year I’ll finally meet my match, and I’ll have to hand over my title. But even if that happens I’ll never forget how great it was to hold the record for so many years.”

Contestants must clean three windows and a window sill using a regulations-standard squeegee. Time is added for any smears left over.

Paul Thrupp, Executive Council Member of the Federation of Window Cleaners and an official Cleaning Show world record judge, said: “Terry has done amazingly well to hang on to his record for this long but there’s always a chance of an upset. Lots of our members have already told us they are planning to take a crack at his record, and some are in training right now.

“Having said that, when you see Terry on video or cleaning live he moves so quickly it’s hard to imagine someone will ever manage a sub-nine second time even if they try and copy his technique. So we’ll have to wait and see if anyone can match him when the competition comes to London next week.”

Anyone else from Northampton interested in taking Terry on, or wanting to watch Ashley make the world record attempt at The Cleaning Show, can register for free at www.cleaningshow.co.uk.

Read more about Mr Mackintosh's story on his window washing blog at https://aemackintosh.wordpress.com/.

The incident took place about 6.30am on Friday, February 3 in East Butterfield Court, off Lings Way.

A neighbour said a similar thing happened to him in 2008 when somebody smashed his car window and destroyed his monitor.

He now fears the same thing is happening again.

He said: "Our neighbour knocked on our door this morning, she said there was some money taken [from her car.]

"[The thief] was riding his bike up the street, you see him trying all the cars. When he got to the white car, he smashed the window and probably caused damage of around £400.

"He was a young guy."

A spokeswoman for Northamptonshire Police said: "We have had a report of a car - a white Toyota Yaris - window having been smashed in East Butterfield Court, Northampton, between 8.30pm on Wednesday, 1 March and 8.30am on Thursday, March 2.

"Cash was taken from the car and police are appealing for witnesses. Anyone who saw anything or who may have any information can contact police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 111 555.

Kaizer Farook of Spinney Hill catches the train to London for his job and always pays to park by phone calling a number and receiving receipts by email and text message.

However, this method does not result in a ticket to display on his windscreen. Consequently, he has been unjustly ticketed three times.

He said: "If you buy a ticket over the phone, it doesn't give you a physical ticket of any sort.

"It is quite distressing to keep appealing. I come back from work after a hard day and there's a ticket on your car. It's quite stressful.

"I don't usually complain about anything, but, after three tickets unjustly received, I feel it's time I spoke out as I wouldn't be surprised if other commuters are also suffering similar 'customer service' from the parking firm."

Mr Farook overturned the first appeal last May but has since been fined twice in the last month and is now in the appeal process.

Train operator London Midland said the car park at Northampton train station is operated by their agents, Indigo, on their behalf.

A spokesman for London Midland said: "We are contacting Indigo to enquire about the three cases you have brought to our attention."

The one-hour, timed game, Trapp'd, is designed to shut in a small group of people inside a themed room where participants are encouraged to use teamwork skills, intuition and intelligence to crack challenging codes, which will lead to their escape.

Owner, David Laird said that work will begin on Monday (February, 6) at a former workshop on Connaught Street, The Mounts, and the goal is for the building to open in May.

He said: "We are aiming between a six to seven-week turnaround.

"There will be four escape rooms but the two rooms we are planning to launch with is an old mine shaft and an optical illusion room.

"We lock you and your friends or colleagues into a room and you have to solve problems and crack codes in 60 minutes, it's not too dissimilar to the Crystal Maze TV show."

The popular teamwork game has already three escape rooms in Corby.

Back in the trenches.

There are plenty of stealth games out there, most of which will reward you for keeping your weapon holstered.

Games like Dishonored 2 will praise your restraint despite your enticing abilities, and punish you with annoying nests of bloodflies if you give in.

Not so with Sniper Elite, a series that so revels in slaughter in all manner of horrific ways that it has become known for the anatomical precision of its brutal Kill Cam.

The fourth entry to the series is no different as we pack our long-range weaponry to the scenic Italian coasts of 1943, back in the war-ravaged boots of dullard everyman Karl Fairburne.

Each location Rebellion Developments has created is dizzyingly vast, with enough variety to keep things interesting.

Whatever situation you’re faced with, preparation and patience is vital as you make the most of your environment to defeat the Axis powers.

Planes flying overhead and artillery gunfire can mask your activities, whereas at night you might prefer a silent approach, sticking to the shadows. Every level change forces you to think and strategise differently.

Of course, the Kill Cam is as gorily compulsive as ever. XP tumbles across the screen to congratulate you for the creativity of your sharpshooting.

Attempts to tell more than just a typical WW2 story are made by scanning your enemies with your binoculars and through collectibles fall flat, however.

Searching enemy corpses will uncover many letters to loved ones. Yet, any emotional reaction is undermined when you pop their mates in the Nazi knackers straight after. Battlefield 1 this ain’t.

War might be hell, but perhaps Sniper Elite 4 might help other stealth games to rediscover what it’s like to have some good - not so clean - fun.

Pharmacists could soon be handing out diagnoses and prescriptions, GPs could be assessing patients over Skype and a cohort of assistants could be recruited to save the county’s GP; service from imploding over the next five years.

Northamptonshire health bosses have predicted they will need to recruit 150 new GPs by 2021 if the NHS continues to be run the way it is.

But with two surgeries set to close in Northamptonshire in March after Virgin Care announced it would be pulling out of the town and figures showing 40 per cent of GPs are approaching retirement nationally, health bosses in Northamptonshire said the GP service has to change.

Daventry GP Matthew Davis - the clinical leader on the board that drew up the county's five-year NHS savings plan (called the Sustainability and Transformation Plan) - said moves are already in place to increase the number of pharmacists able to deliver “same day care” in the county through the training provider 360 Training Limited.

He said: “These will be pharmacists by background, but actually once they have gone through a clinical training program, they will be able to do same-day care.

“It means they can examine people, make diagnoses and give out prescriptions.”

Furthermore, Mr Davis said the NHS in Northamptonshire will have to increase the number of new assistant-type roles to meet the £230 million savings demand.

While health organisations are currently largely comprised of doctors, nurses, carers and midwives, Mr Davis said clinical teams will need to increasingly take on roles such as “physicians’ assistants”, “care assistants” and “nursing associates”. All of these roles require lesser training and have been described by The Royal College of Nursing as “nursing on the cheap.”

But Mr Davis, said: “It would be a concern, but that would be if we weren’t coming from that central view of quality.

“I don’t think there is any suggestion we will have fewer people. People might be doing different things, but no one is going to lose their job.”

John Wardell who is the head of the STP board said the new healthcare assistants would not be “working in isolation.”

He said: “We are moving much more towards working in integrated teams.

“The challenge for us is around recruitment and retention of staff.

“So we have to be creative and look at the evidence”.”

Police searching for a missing Northamptonshire man have confirmed a body was found this afternoon in woodland near Yardley Gobion by Northamptonshire Search and Rescue and Midshires Search and Rescue.

No formal identification has yet taken place but officers believe it is that of 62-year-old Peter Hastings. The death is not being treated as suspicious and the family have been informed.

Search and rescue teams were joined by members of the public in their search for Peter and the family have issued their profound thanks for everybody’s help and kindness.

They have asked that their privacy be respected at this difficult time.

The Town midfielder struck in the 61st minute to claim his seventh goal in the past seven games and seal a thoroughly deserved win for Justin Edinburgh's team, who now move above the Addicks in the Sky Bet League One table.

Michael Smith had fired the Cobblers into a 32nd-minute lead with his first goal for the club, but the visitors levelled four minutes later through Ezri Konsa Ngoyo.

Town were not to be denied the victory though, with O'Toole driving home a low shot from 16 yards after a right-wing cross from Aaron Phillips had been headed into his path.

With other results going their way, the win sees the Cobblers move up to 15th in the table, and also sees them open up a seven-point gap between them and the relegation zone.

Town made three changes to the team that lost 2-1 at Oldham Athletic in midweek.

Right-back Neal Eardley was unavailable as his partner gave birth on Saturday morning, Keshi Anderson was dropped to the bench and Hiram Boateng left out of the 18 altogether.

The Crystal Palace midfielder had to sit it out as teams are only allowed five loan players in their matchday squad, and boss Justin Edinburgh opted for Anderson, Lewin Nyatanga, Gregg Wylde, Michael Smith and Luke Williams, who returned for his first start since the 2-1 defeat at Walsall, having recovered from a knee problem.

Aaron Phillips, who hasn't played since the loss to Bradford on January 2, replaced Eardley, while Marc Richards was recalled in attack in place of Anderson.

There was a boost for the Cobblers with Brendan Moloney returning, the Irishman being named on the bench having not featured since suffering a knee ligament injury in the 1-0 defeat to Peterborough on November 19.

Charlton included former Cobblers winger Ricky Holmes in their starting line-up, fresh from scoring a hat-trick in the Addicks' 4-3 defeat at Shrewsbury Town on Tuesday night.

After a quiet start to the game, with both teams knocking the ball around without any end product, it was Holmes who had the first sight of goal, but his 20-yard effort flew high and wide of Adam Smith's goal.

Smith then had to be off his line quickly to deal with a short backpass from Williams, before the Cobblers finally registered their first shot on goal on 14 minutes, but Smith dragged his effort from the left edge of the penalty area wide.

Both teams were being restricted to pot shots from distance, but on 20 minutes Town suffered a serious blow when Gaby Zakuani suffered what looked like a hamstring pull, and had to go off to be replaced by Zander Diamond.

The injury will be a huge frustration for player and manager Edinburgh, as it occurred when Zakuani collided with own goalkeeper Smith as they both went for the same ball over the top when there was no danger.

The Cobblers were keeping the ball well, and began to take contol midway through the half.

Diamond headed a Taylor free-kick straight at Charlton keeper Declan Rudd from a tight angle, but the home side did break the deadlock on 32 minutes with a peach of a goal.

The ball was played down the right wing and looked to be going out, but Phillips chased it down and sent in a brilliant first time cross with his right foot.

The ball was begging to be met by a Cobblers player in the middle, and it was met beauifully by Smith who sent a poweful header beyond Rudd and into the top corner from 10 yards.

Town deservedly led, but as has so often been the case this season, they alomost immediately allowed their opponents back into the game.

Holmes won a corner down the left wing and delivered it himself to the far post, where an unmarked Ezri Knosa Ngoyo went for goal.

Smith saved his initial effort, but Jordan Botaka was alive to the rebound and slammed a volley home from six yards out to level it up at 1-1.

Cobblers fans then feared the worst on 40 minutes as Williams fouled Lewis Page on the edge of the penalty area to give Holmes the chance of delivering a trademark free-kick, but thankfully as far as Town were concerend his radar was off and the ball flew five yards over.

Botaka then sent a fizzing strike just over the top as Charlton found some confidence, but it was all square at the break.

Both teams started the second half with positive intent, and it led to a really open encounter with the play switching from end to end.

Botaka could have fired Charlton in front within a minute of the restart, but Smith tipped his angled drive over the top, and another long-range effort from Lee Novak packed plenty of punch, but not enough accuracy as it whistled over the bar.

The Cobblers were probing away, looking for an opening, but they were struggling to create anything clearcut, until they regained the lead on 61 minutes.

It stemmed from an effort from Jorge Teixeira, who gifted possession to Williams in the centre circle.

The Town man played the ball wide to Smith on the right, who in turn fed Phillips on the overlap. His cross was headed clear, but only to O'Toole 16 yards out and he drilled the ball abck with interest and into the net.

It was the midfielder's seventh goal in his past seven games.

Charlton struggled to muster any sort of positive response to Town's second goal, while the Cobblers tried to keep things tight.

The visitors kept trying to create, but the Cobblers hounded them whenever they had possession, with striker Smith and Richards the first line of defence.

Neither side seriously threatened the goal again until the 87th minute, but Smith failed to get a proper connection on Taylor's wicked free-kick from the left.

Match facts

Cobblers: A Smith, Phillips, Zakuani (Diamond, 22mins), Nyatanga, Buchanan, Taylor, O'Toole, Williams (P Anderson, 68 mins), Wylde (McCourt, 80 mins), Richards, M Smith. Subs not used: Moloney, K Anderson, Beautyman, Cornell.

Charlton Athletic: Rudd, Page (Chicksen, 73mins), Bauer (Teixeira, 46mins), Crofts,, Mageninis, Holmes, Botaka, Kona Ngoyo, Ulvestad, Byrne, Novak (Watt, 76mins). Subs not used: Jackson, Phillips, Aribo, Da Silva

Referee: Ben Toner

Attendance: 7,118 (Charlton fans 1,424)

The AJ Bell Stadium has been an unhappy hunting ground in recent seasons.

But Saints exited the Salford venue with broad smiles on their faces on Friday night.

Because not only did they win, smashing a league hoodoo that stretches back to November, 2012 - they won in style.

Ethan Waller's try put the icing on the cake of an impressive away performance.

Saints took their chances when they came and ensured the Sharks never really got a sniff.

The home side did manage to score two tries, but neither affected the flow of the game.

Saints simply held their nerve and responded on both occasions, ensuring they sailed serenely to a timely bonus-point success.

Needless to say, this was by far their best display at Sale for some years.

And it was also by far their best display of the season as a whole.

Jim Mallinder's men have failed to get the balance right between attack and defence during this campaign.

Too many times, when one department of the game has functioned, the other has proved their undoing.

But not here.

Saints got both areas of the game right for long periods.

And consequently, they picked up a maximum haul that leaves them just four points off the top four with five games of the regular-season to go.

They remain outsiders for a play-off spot, simply because of the fixtures that remain.

After the home clash with local rivals Leicester Tigers later this month, they go to Wasps and Exeter, with those games sandwiching a Stadium MK showdown with Saracens.

And the season concludes with a game against Harlequins at Franklin's Gardens.

So it's fair to say there have been easier run-ins.

But Saints can now at least take confidence into those encounters.

Because at Sale, they really showed up.

Their forwards functioned how they wanted, with the Sharks submerged under big pack pressure.

The away side's lineout drive looked a big weapon again and the scrum showing was the strongest in recent times.

Sale had no answer, they could not lay any foundations.

And Saints whipped the rug from under them on four occasions, with Ken Pisi's finish from a quick move added to by a couple of big shoves and eventually Waller's score.

You never felt Saints would lose this.

There was to be no Newcastle-style collapse after half-time.

Instead, they rolled up their sleeves and secured the win they desperately wanted.

In a tough season, this was a stand-out showing.

A beacon of light.

And the only frustration from a Saints perspective is that they can't go out next week and back it up.

They have to wait three weeks before taking on Leicester Tigers at the Gardens.

And another complete showing of this kind will be needed if they are to end another bad run.

Saints have not tamed the Tigers since December, 2014, losing the past six meetings between the sides.

But if they can banish their AJ Bell Stadium demons, they can defeat a Leicester team who were well beaten at home by Exeter Chiefs on Friday night.

And that is now the immediate target, with hopes of the top four just starting to appear on the horizon once again.

How they rated...

AHSEE TUALA

Had a slippery start, but regained his balance and helped Saints to produce a strong attacking display... 7

KEN PISI

Has been back among the tries of late, scoring three in his past five matches, and he seems to have renewed belief... 7

NAFI TUITAVAKE

Has impressed since making his way into the team and his attacking skill-set, which is his clear strength, was on show again here... 7

HARRY MALLINDER

A really impressive display from the centre as his ability to find space and shrewd kicking proved key in this victory... 8

BEN FODEN

The skipper has looked useful on the wing and he helped to ensure Sale didn't get a sniff on his side of the field... 7

STEPHEN MYLER - CHRON STAR MAN

Controlled the game superbly, kicking brilliantly from hand and from the tee before playing a clever pass to set up the bonus-point try for Ethan Waller... 8

NIC GROOM

Like Myler, he pulled the strings well and his ability to spot an opening kept Sale on their toes... 7

ALEX WALLER

A powerful performance from the prop, who continues to be ultra-reliable and who enjoyed himself in the set piece... 7

MIKE HAYWOOD

You just can't keep this man away from the try line. He bagged his eighth effort of the season in yet another impressive showing... 8

KIERAN BROOKES

His best display in recent times as he looked strong around the park and also took Sale to task in the scrum... 7

MICHAEL PATERSON

The experienced lock enjoyed the return to his former club, scoring once and helping to push Haywood over the line for another effort... 8

JAMES CRAIG

Made sure Saints didn't miss the influential Christian Day as he provided an assured presence in the second row... 7

JAMIE GIBSON

Has been one of the stars of a tricky season for Saints and he worked so hard again here, putting Sale under pressure at every opportunity... 7

CALUM CLARK

Like Gibson, he got through plenty of graft and looked frustrated to be replaced as he appeared to be enjoying his evening... 7

TEIMANA HARRISON

England's loss has been Saints' gain, with the flanker making the most of game time for his club with another good display in a position he seems to relish playing... 7

Town found themselves in the thick of the relegation battle following Tuesday night's home defeat at the hands of Oldham Athletic, and the pressure was on the players to produce against another struggling team in the Addicks.

The Cobblers did just that as goals from Michael Smith and John-Joe O'Toole sealed a deserved win over Charlton, who now drop below the Cobblers in the Sky Bet League One table.

With results elsewhere favourable, Town are now 15th in the table and seven points clear of the bottom four, and Edinburgh was a happy man

"We were bitterly disappointed with the end result on Tuesday, and the manner in which we lost the game, but full credit to the players today," said the Cobblers boss.

"We asked questions of one another this week, and today they have found the answers.

"It was a good atmosphere, a good game in difficult conditions, but certainly in the second half I thought we controlled the game, and I am obviously delighted with a big three points."

Smith headed the Cobblers in front with his first goal for the club in the first half, only for Charlton to level before the break.

Town then controlled proceedings for much of the second half, and O'Toole's 12th goal of the campaign, and seventh in the past seven games, sealed the points on 61 minutes.

Both goals were set up by right-back Aaron Phillips, who was a late call up to the team after Neal Eardley dropped out as his partner went into labour and gave birth on Saturday morning.

The former Coventry City man was outstanding, as was Smith, and Edinburgh singled both players out for praise.

"There were a lot of really strong performances today, throughout the team," said the Cobblers boss.

"I am really pleased for Michael Smith, whose all-round game has been excellent since he has been here, and his work-rate has been great.

"Hopefully that goal can set him up now for a few more goals as we go along, and a special mention for Aaron Phillips,

"He has had to be patient, but I thought he was excellent from start to finish against a really strong opponent.

"He kept him quiet, but not only did he do that, he set two goals up and I am really pleased for him.

"That is what you ask of players. You try and get them up to speed, and when they get their chance you want them to have an impact and that was certainly the case."

The only down side to the afternoon for the Cobblers was an injury to central defender Gaby Zakuani, who was forced off the pitch after just 20 minutes.

He was injured in a collision with Adam Smith, and Edinburgh said: "It looks like it is a recurrence of the hamstring injury he had before.

"That is a real blow for us, and for Gaby himself.

"I guess after the weekend we will get him scanned and on Monday or Tuesday we will have a clearer idea of the extent of the injury, but it doesn't look great."

Lime pictures, producers of hit Channel 4 soap Hollyoaks have issued a warning after it emerged that companies claiming to be recruiting paid extras on their behalf were doing so WITHOUT the knowledge or consent of the producers.

A number of Facebook posts have been shared by pages claiming to represent the show calling for paid extras, but a statement from Lime Pictures urged people to “be responsible and not to provide personal information or contact details to these companies or accounts”.

Their statement read: “Lime Pictures only engages reputable casting agencies and professionals in the North of England, all of whom can be found listed on Spotlight.”

One Facebook page called ‘Local talent’ claimed to be sourcing extras for the hit show. Their post said “ This will be a paid opportunity. We are looking for around 500 people in total. This job will consist of a full day’s filming.”

At the time of writing it had been shared over 67,000 times since being posted yesterday evening. The post appears to have since been deleted.

Lime pictures provided the following link to Spotlight, where they actually DO do their recruiting: https://www.spotlight.com/contacts.