Local 'dirtbuster' stars are expected to turn out in force for the opening round of the club's solo championship in Long Buckby on Sunday (March 17).

Classes include expert, junior and two-stroke.

Many riders will be on new machinery while others will be testing the work they have put into their bikes over the winter months.

The first of 20 energy sapping races is scheduled to start at 10.30am after the 9.30am practice.

The track is next to the A428 (postcode NN6 7PH).

Tickets are £5 and include paddock access and programme while admission for under-15s is free, as is parking.

On-site refreshments include a burger van.

Joe Powell scored a sensational last-gasp winner as Cobblers kept alive their play-off hopes with a fourth successive win as they left it late to stun Newport County 1-0 at the PTS on Tuesday evening.

With the game meandering towards a goalless draw, it was always going to take something special to claim all three points and Powell, on as a second-half substitute, provided just that with a wonderful left-footed volley that flew into the top corner from 25 yards.

It’s debatable whether Town merited victory on the balance of play but at this stage of the season it’s all about substance over style and Powell’s 88th minute strike ensured they remain in the play-off picture.

The Cobblers took a while to get to grips with both their opponents and the game itself in a topsy-turvy, enjoyable opening period, coming under pressure before ending the half on top.

Despite plenty of chances though, it remained goalless at half-time and Town were then below-par in the second-half, but it didn’t matter when Powell blasted home in spectacular style to grab a dramatic victory, their fourth in a row and seventh successive game unbeaten.

The Cobblers have jumped up to 11th place in Sky Bet League Two as a result – the first time they’ve been in the top half all season – and within six points off the top seven, keeping the play-off dream very much alive.

Manager Keith Curle was forced into one change on Tuesday as Marvin Sordell failed to recover in time to make the squad so top scorer Andy Williams led the line.

The tone for an entertaining first 45 minutes was set early on with Cobblers making a bright start and creating two openings in the first five minutes, Sam Hoskins having a close-range shot blocked and Joe Day saving at the feet of Daniel Powell from the following corner.

Long throws were proving a particularly lethal weapon for both teams, but the tide gradually swung Newport’s way and the visitors threatened a first goal on several occasions during a dominant 20-minute spell.

Jamille Matt out-muscled Ash Taylor to head against the crossbar before Aaron Pierre stuck out his leg to block Padraig Amond’s goalbound shot, with Tyreeq Bakinson firing the rebound into the side-netting.

Matt also dragged wide after escaping the home defence but, whilst the visitors were on top, they were fortunate in the extreme not to concede a penalty just short of the half-hour mark after Charlie Goode’s cross clearly struck an out-stretched arm inside the box.

With others still unsuccessfully screaming for a spot-kick, Williams’ hooked volley was tipped over by Day, and the striker was close again moments later, just unable to reach Aaron Piere’s low cross.

The momentum had now swung back Northampton’s way and they really should have taken a lead into half-time when John-Joe O’Toole burst through and squared for Powell, but though his shot squeezed through Day, a defender raced back to block near the goal-line.

Pierre flicked a header wide with the last act of the first-half and Town continued to create chances after half-time as Day beat away a powerful effort from Williams.

The decision to replace Williams with Jack Bridge didn’t go down well with the home faithful, and Town twice nearly fell behind either side of that substitution as Robbie Willmott headed just wide and Mark O’Brien slashed off target.

Matt could also only find the roof of the net when the ball dropped kindly to him inside the box as County threatened to win it, but instead it was Town who snatched all three points when Powell, off the bench, scored his second Cobblers goal in sensational fashion, clipping the crossbar with a left-footed volley 90 seconds from full-time.

Match facts

Cobblers: Cornell, Goode, Taylor, Pierre, Buchanan, Turnbull, Foley, O’Toole (J Powell 86), Hoskins, D Powell, A Williams (Bridge 66)

Subs not used: Coddington, J Williams, Elsnik, Roberts, Bowditch

Newport: Day, Butler, Labadie (Sheehan 89), Willmott, Bakinson, Bennett (McKirdy 89), O’Brien (c) (Azeez 88), Poole, Demetriou, Matt, Amond

Subs not used: Pipe, Marsh-Brown, Forbes, Townsend

Referee: Antony Coggins

Attendance: 4,064

Newport fans: 98

The match was heading for a 0-0 draw when Powell, only just on as a substitute, let fly with an unstoppable 25-yard volley that rifled into top corner via the crossbar two minutes from time.

That would be enough for Town to claim a fourth straight win and extend their unbeaten run to seven matches, lifting them into the top half of League Two and within six points of the play-offs.

Curle said: "As the game was panning out, it was one of those nights where both sets of players and both managers had set themselves out not to be intimidated and to make sure they were competitive.

"It was two teams who nullified each other and neither team wanted to take a backward step. Because of that, and because the emphasis was on trying to impose yourself on the opposition, sometimes the quality didn't shine through.

"We did get some opportunities but the intensity of our play in stopping the opposition detracted sometimes from when we had good possession of the ball.

"But the players showed the willingness, the desire and the character and one of the things I said to them before the game was that we have to make sure we don't lose any individual battle all over the park.

"I thought we competed very well and just lacked a little bit of quality but then Joe showed the one bit of quality to win the game - it was a fantastic goal. What a left peg, what a strike!"

Ian Tempest will referee Saints' sold-out clash with Saracens in the Premiership Rugby Cup final on Sunday (kick-off 3pm).

And fans of the black, green and gold will be hoping their good run with the official in charge can continue.

Tempest has overseen some of Saints' most important victories in recent times.

The Wirral-born referee was in charge for the vital victory against Gloucester at Franklin's Gardens in the first game of 2018.

The victory helped Saints to stop the slide as they rebuilt their season.

And Tempest also refereed the final game of the calendar year, which saw Saints beat high-flying Exeter Chiefs at the Gardens.

Tempest was back in Northampton last month as he oversaw Saints' last-gasp triumph against Bath.

And now Chris Boyd's men will be hoping to enjoy more success on home turf when they welcome Saracens this weekend.

Tempest, who turns 31 in June, will be assisted by Wayne Falla and Paul Dix.

The television match official (TMO) will be Trevor Fisher.

Hannah was travelling with her partner Kelly, and a child who they care for in tow, on Wednesday night (March 6), when a car pulled across the central reservation on Lumbertubs Way, while heading towards Boothville, which Hannah hit side on and ricocheted into a signpost

Hannah's car was a write-off and all three passengers sustained minor injuries, including seat belts scratches.

This week police officers in Northamptonshire are warning the public that the difference between life and death in a road traffic collision can often be down to whether you are wearing a seat belt or not.

Hannah, who was wearing her seat belt, said all drivers should buckle up as common practise: "Accidents can happen to anyone, and everywhere.

"If we were not wearing our seat belts we would have major injuries, or worse.

"They are there for a reason and that reason is to keep you alive."

A two-week-long operation, which started on Monday (March 11), will target people who fail to wear their seat belts while on the roads. Those found to not be wearing one will face further action.

Hannah's dad Raymond said: "I am very grateful they were wearing seat belts as it could have been a different week.

"Instead of organising trips to doctors or pharmacy, it could easily have been the undertakers."

Every year, seat belt use in passenger vehicles saves more than 10,000 lives.

People not wearing a seat belt are 30 times more likely to be ejected from a vehicle during a crash and more than three out of four people who are ejected during a fatal crash die from their injuries.

Last week Ray spent days in A&E with Hannah and Kelly, who thanks to wearing their seat belts, did not sustain serious injuries.

Raymond added: "Without seat belts it would have been a different story.

“I am so grateful to the first responder, ambulance service, police and staff at Northampton General Hospital for their rapid response, assessment and care taken to make sure they were okay both at the scene and in A&E.

"The first responder came to see them at 2.30am in the morning at hospital. They have to deal with the aftermath of people who don’t wear seat belts, and should not have to carry that burden.

"Also thank you to the people who came out of their houses with duvets and blankets to help at the roadside. It was a great community spirit, not always expressed in Northampton."

Over the course of the seat belt campaign, officers from across the force, including enforcement vehicles, will be out and about across the county, looking for anyone who isn’t belted up.

The walkway between Sheep Street and the market square has been neglected and rundown for years since the Greyfriars station was knocked down.

But on March 30, the underpass will be alive with hot food, dancing, art demonstrations and live music.

FAMfest will be the culmination of work by the community charity NorFAMton to renovate the area and make it fit to be the town's first street art gallery.

Pedestrians will have already noticed the artwork sprayed onto the walls of Emporium Way.

It will serve as a backdrop to the festival, which is the brainchild of NorFAMton's director Shereen Ingram.

She said: "Towns and cities around the world are really embracing the potential of street art.

"It give communities identity, pride and a way to celebrate their heritage. It brightens the place up and also gives artists a very public canvas on which to show their work."

NorFAMton's Kate Stanton said: "We really wanted to remind people that Northampton has a lot going for it and to exhibit some of the talent and creativity that is based here.

"Bringing people into areas they might have once avoided and putting art in everyday places where it can be enjoyed for free can only be a good thing for the town."

FAMfest will take place from noon to 6pm on March 30 and is free. The area is wheelchair and mobility scooter accessible.

NorFAMtoN is especially keen to promote the work of women and those from BAME and diverse backgrounds such as those with disabilities or social disadvantages. They also have plans to work with local communities to decorate some of the subways in areas out of the town centre.

Their work is supported by Northampton Borough Council, in particular Councillor Anna King, Northampton BID and Northamptonshire Highways.

Who stood up to the task and who wilted under pressure at the PTS? Find out with James Heneghan's player ratings - scroll down and flick through our picture gallery to see how each player performed.

Northampton Borough Council has defended the advertising of its budget consultation, after 21 people responded to the proposals online and one person turned up to a public meeting.

Former leader of the council, Brian Hoare attended Monday’s full council meeting and told councillors he was the only member of public to turn up to a public meeting about the 2019/20 proposals.

But the cabinet member for finance, Councillor Brandon Eldred, said that the council had ‘fulfilled its statutory duty’.

In a written response to Mr Hoare, he said: “The draft budget went to audit committee, the overview and scrutiny committee and cabinet, with all meetings open to the public and papers published in advance.

“A press release was circulated and posted on our website on January 8. This went out to a total of 230 recipients including all NBC members and parish councils. This was followed up with posts on Facebook and Twitter on January 10 and 18, including one about the public meeting.

“The public meeting was also promoted on the consultation web page - where people would sign on to access the survey and corresponding documents.

“We also published the news on our website and posted two social media alerts on both of our primary social media platforms.”

Responding to the answers in a supplementary question at the meeting, Mr Hoare said: “Only one member of the public, myself, attending the budget meeting on February 5. At that meeting you said that it had been extensively advertised by social media. The response I have received seems to indicate that it wasn’t extensively advertised at all. Is it fair that members of the public should be left out of the budget consultation?”

But Councillor Eldred retorted: “There were various advertisements, and we actually did more and reached more people than he did when he was leader.”

The budget proposals, which were approved by council on February 25, included a 2.99 per cent council tax rise, a rise in car parking charges (which is still to go out to consultation) and an investment in keeping the emergency night shelter running to the tune of £135,000.

She Drew The Gun will be bringing their hypnotic and darkly ornate psych-pop to Esquires later this year.

The band recently released new single Paradise, the third track to be taken from second album Revolution Of Mind which was released last year.

The album was chosen as a 6Music Recommends Album Of The Year 2018 alongside albums from IDLES, Kamasi Washington, and Arctic Monkeys among others.

Under the moniker She Drew The Gun, Wirral native Louisa Roach started playing solo gigs with a handful of songs in 2014.

After meeting James Skelly from The Coral in 2015, she began recording with him at Skeleton Key Records and recruiting band members along the way.

Having toured Europe with Fink in 2015 she emerged in 2016 with debut record Memories of the Future and a fully formed band.

That year the group saw off 5,000 competitors to win Glastonbury's emerging talent contest, made their first TV performance on Soccer Am and supported The Coral on a UK tour.

After adding new songs and reissuing their debut album as Memories of Another Future in 2017 they continued to tour, performing at SXSW and across a string of UK festivals including main stage performances at Glastonbury, Deer Shed, Cambridge Folk Festival and On Blackheath among others.

Last week they completed a sold-out UK tour.

She Drew The Gun headline Esquires in Bedford on Saturday, October 26.

Tickets are on sale from Wednesday, March 13, at 10am and cost £12 in advance via www.ticketweb.uk and promoters www.juiceboxindie.com and www.thepadpresents.com.

Tickets will also be available from Slide Record Shop and Esquires bar.

A group who use Cherry Orchard Park near Hardingstone built the ramps and maintained them over several years by digging up the land to allow them and others to enhance their skills.

But Northampton Borough Council, which owns the park, has now undone their work by flattening the ground again with a mini JCB, and accused those responsible of being dangerous vandals.

A spokeswoman for Northampton Borough Council said it had levelled out a large number of "ruts, drops and ditches" after recent complaints from parents and dogwalkers.

She said: “The wooded area is part of borough council-owned parkland, intended for recreation and appropriate public use, and not for mountain bike and BMX dirt trails.

"Some of these ditches were more than five foot in depth, and therefore presented a danger to park users; especially children."

The riposte comes after a group of cyclists complained about the ramps being flattened.

A petition was then created to persuade the council to think again, which has gained well over 300 signatures.

But the council says YouTube videos show bikes travelling at high speed over the jumps, which it says was hazardous to people using the park.

Parts of the Delapre Park Registered Historic Battlefield have also been dug up, disturbing pottery in the ground, says the council.

The spokeswoman said: “Our officers have previously spoken with some of the bikers to inform them that they are vandalising borough council-owned land, but they continued to dig these trenches, resulting in the action taken.

"There are appropriate designated areas within the borough for bikers - for example at the Radlands Plaza- where they can ride and not cause a danger to other members of the public.”

Mountain biker Tom Robinson, who uses the trail regularly, said the course had given bikers pleasure for more than 20 years without harming anyone, and had fostered a close community.

He claims the bikers there have not built any new jumps in recent years but they have maintained the existing ones.

His petition says: "We obviously share the land with many walkers and animals, which are all greeted with respect and riders will always ensure they and others around them are safe when riding.

"But for the council, this wasn't acceptable and they have decided to ruin it for the community that has been built here."

1 THEATRE
HMS Pinafore with Trial by Jury, Royal & Derngate, Northampton, March 18 to 23
Northampton Gilbert & Sullivan Group performs the perennial favourite, which brings together colourful characters galore in a story of love, rank, questionable decisions, a First Lord who has never set sail and, of course, English politeness. Combining the wit and satire of Gilbert and containing some of Sullivan’s best loved music, director Leon Berger brings his unique vision to this 65th anniversary production.
Details: royalandderngate.co.uk

2 THEATRE
A Death of Convenience, Abbey Centre, Overslade Close, East Hunsbury, March 14 to 16
Abbey Community Theatre stage this murder mystery. Son Geoffrey is visiting with his wife Lydia and his business partner and his wife, and there is much business to discuss over the course of the weekend. Lydia hates the country but has taken a shine to Barry, the gardener. Events take a shocking turn one night and nothing is the same again...
Details: abbeycommunitytheatre.co.uk

3 COMEDY
Shappi Khorsandi, Royal & Derngate, Northampton, March 15
Comedian, author and self-proclaimed idiot who agreed to be tortured on I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here!, Shappi Khorsandi is a woman of many parts. This brand new tour is filled with stories of the comedy club scene in the 90s through to being a TV comic .
Details: royalandderngate.co.uk

4 MUSIC
Northampton Concert Orchestra, Abington Avenue United Reformed Church, Northampton, March 16
Entitled All Aboard, the spring concert programme has a transport theme. Opening with the Galop from Rossini’s William Tell Overture, the programme will include works by Vaughan Williams, Jerome Kern, an arrangement of Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines and much more.
Details: northamptonconcertorchestra.org.uk

5 COMEDY
Ahir Shah - Duffer, The Deco, Northampton, March 15
Ahir Shah returns with a new stand-up show about life, death and Bohemian Rhapsody.
Details:

6 MUSIC
Someone Like You – The Adele Songbook, The Core at Corby Cube, March 21
X Factor finalist Katie Markham was selected by Adele to appear in the BBC Adele Special. See and hear Katie celebrate the singer’s work on stage.
Details: www.thecorecorby.com

7 MUSIC
Jack Lukeman, Royal & Derngate, Northampton, March 16
The Irish singer-songwriter, showman and raconteur incorporates the theatrical and romantic sensibilities of the likes of Jacques Brel, but with genuine melodic appeal and a knack for creating his own ‘magic realist’ world peopled by all manner of unusual characters.
Details: royalandderngate.co.uk

8 COMEDY
Screaming Blue Murder, The Core at Corby Cube, March 22
Compère Sally-Anne Hayward is joined in The Lab by comedians Anthony King, Eleanor Tiernan and Markus Birdman.
Details: www.thecorecorby.com

9 THEATRE
The Remains of the Day, Royal & Derngate, Northampton, until March 16
Nobel Prize winner Kazuo Ishiguro’s literary masterpiece has entranced generations as a novel and an acclaimed Merchant Ivory film. Now it’s transformed for the first time into an exquisite stage play by one of Britain’s most exciting young writers, starring Niamh Cusack and Stephen Boxer.
Details: royalandderngate.co.uk

10 THEATRE
The Beauty Queen of Leenane, Playhouse Theatre, Northampton, until March 16
Now established as a modern classic of Irish theatre, The Beauty Queen of Leenane tells the story of Maureen Foley. Now middle-aged, she is a plain and lonely woman who lives with her manipulative, ageing mother Mag. Her mother’s interference in Maureen’s first and potentially only romantic relationship sets in motion a chain of events that are as tragically funny as they are horrific. The production is presented by Northampton theatre company White Cobra Productions.
Details: www.ticketsource.co.uk/whitecobra

With the assistance of Steve's Football Stats, club websites and local historians we've collated a ranking of the top scorer for every team currently playing in the English Premier League and English Football League.

Repair works will finally start on Northampton’s Queen Eleanor Cross on April 1, it has been confirmed.

The London Road cross, one of only three remaining in the country, marks one of the nightly resting places of the funeral procession of King Edward I’s wife, Queen Eleanor of Castile, between Harby, near Lincoln, and London.

The repair works, funded by Northampton Borough Council and matched by Historic England, include the reinstatement of loose stonework, conservation repairs to the fragile 13th-century stonework, and carefully selected shelter coatings to some more vulnerable areas. In several limited areas, new pieces of stone might be required.

Last autumn, experts brought in to assess the monument advised that there are iron cramps in some locations. These are thought to be corroding, and causing damage to the masonry. The borough council had faced criticism for delaying the 'urgent' works from the publication of the experts' report, but they are now just under three weeks away.

Councillor James Hill, a cabinet member on Northampton Borough Council, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “It’s no April Fool’s Joke, weather permitting work will be starting on April 1. It’s likely that the scaffolding will go up then, and I’m sure it will look good when it’s all done.”

Back in January, more than 1,500 residents had signed a petition calling on the council to erect scaffolding or put a temporary cover over the cross to protect it during winter. But the council said to do so would go against advice from Historic England. Since then, the cross has remained in its current state.

But the news that the start of work is impending has been welcomed by Colin Wood, the chairman of Far Cotton Residents’ Association.

He said: “It seems to be heading in the right direction now.”

A severe weather warning remains in place across Northants today (Wednesday).

Storm Gareth continues to sweep across the UK bringing with it high winds and torrential rain.

The Met Office severe weather warning, which kicked in at midday yesterday, will remain in force until 3pm today.

Despite strong winds of up to 46mph in Northamptonshire, sunny spells are also forecast with rain showers scattered throughout the day.

Temperatures are currently sitting at around 9C.

Met Office - What to expect

Probably some bus and train services affected, with some journeys taking longer

Delays for high-sided vehicles on exposed routes and bridges likely

Some short term loss of power and other services is possible

It's likely that some coastal routes, sea fronts and coastal communities are affected by spray and/or large waves.

More than 1,100 people commented on the Chron's Facebook page yesterday when we broke the news that the Taco Bell drive-thru restaurant planned for the town had been given the go-ahead by Northampton Borough Council.

Here is everything we know so far:

> Northampton's first Taco Bell restaurant would create 30 jobs

> Ten of those jobs would be part-time and 20 full-time

> Taco Bell would be built on land around KFC in Walter Tull Way, opposite Sixfields Stadium

> Plans would also see the expansion of the existing KFC to 56 seats, with the new 68-cover Taco Bell drive-thru sitting alongside it

> Taco Bell is part of the same company that owns KFC

> Parking spaces would be lost and the existing drive-thru design at KFC would have to be revised

> Taco Bell is an American chain of fast food restaurants

> The restaurants serve Tex-Mex food including tacos, burritos, quesadillas, nachos

> Taco Bell serves more than two billion customers each year

Despite being contacted for comment, Taco Bell has been unable to confirm an opening date for the new restaurant.

We'll bring you all the latest on the developments in Sixfields as it happens.

Taco Bell drive-thru restaurant planned for Northampton

Krispy Kreme, Greggs, Subway and Starbucks all set to open at new site in Northampton

Costa drive thru and coffee shop opens in Northampton

New two-storey drive-thru restaurant to open on supermarket site in Northampton

Community 'hurt' by plans for new Starbucks in Northampton supermarket car park

Just when it seemed as if Northampton’s play-off chances were about to recede from possible to improbable, Joe Powell stepped up with his best Ricky Holmes impression.

The Cobblers were off the pace and below-par for much of Tuesday’s clash with Newport County but if they are to sustain their unlikely play-off surge until the very end this season, they will have to master the art of finding ways to win when not at their best.

Whether that’s through moments of magic, good fortune or scrappy, ugly goals is not relevant. We’re now at a stage of the season where it’s substance over style and points over everything else.

And if you are going to win a match with a dramatic late goal, you might as well do it like this. Powell’s wonderful strike on Tuesday, which required superb technique, perfect timing and brilliant execution, hardly belonged in such a low-key, low-quality game but will Town care? Not likely.

It stretched their winning run to four and made it seven games unbeaten in total, lifting them above Newport in the process and all the way up to the heady heights of 11th, the highest position they’ve held all season long, by a good three places too.

The fact the play-offs are even being discussed as a realistic possibility is an illustration of how rapidly things have changed. With each victory the glimmer of hope gets that little bit bigger, and now it’s become a distinct possibility.

Tuesday’s victory was the least convincing and most fortunate of Town’s four-game winning run. They were off the pace, particularly second-half, and perhaps lucky not to fall behind as Jamille Matt had three chances himself – hitting the crossbar, dragging wide and lofting over – while Aaron Pierre blocked from Padraig Amond and Mark O’Brien snatched at his shot when the goal beckoned.

But despite struggling for fluency and fluidity in attack, Northampton had chances too, including the best of the whole game when John-Joe O’Toole burst through the middle and teed up Daniel Powell, but he failed to beat a combination of goalkeeper and defender.

The game was meandering towards a goalless draw when the other Powell, Joe, announced himself in spectacular fashion. It’s not always been plain-sailing for the 20-year-old since signing on loan from West Ham United in January.

Whilst clearly talented, he’s been short on game-time and remains a little lightweight but that’s why he’s come to the rough and tumble of League Two: to test himself physically in the men’s game.

And talent will always shine through if it’s accompanied by hard work. Powell has shown both during his time at the Cobblers and you will struggle to find a better goal anywhere in the country than his thunderous left-footed volley that rifled into the top corner, pleasingly catching the crossbar on its way in.

That secured a fourth win in a row, the first time Northampton have achieved such a feat in the league since their record-breaking run in 2015/16. The winning goal in their fourth win during that sequence? Holmes’ sensational late volley at Dagenham.

It’s unlikely Town will play well in all nine remaining games so they must continue to find ways to win – as they did on Tuesday – to have any chance of reaching the play-offs.

But the fixtures are kind. Only two of their final nine opponents occupy a top-half place at present while six are currently no higher than 16th, including Saturday’s hosts Grimsby Town – who lost 4-1 at Tranmere on Tuesday.

What also helps is that they are not only six points off seventh-placed Colchester United, but also only six behind sixth-placed Forest Green Rovers too, giving them two teams to catch. Only one has to falter to open the door to the chasing pack.

It almost beggars belief to think that Northampton were 16 – sixteen – points away from the play-offs after losing to Colchester. That gap has been slashed by 10 points. With four of the five teams immediately above them playing one another this coming Saturday, victory at Grimsby would almost certainly make further inroads.

The Cobblers are also into the top half for the first time all season and, even more remarkably, they are now closer to the top three (14 points) than the bottom two (19). It’s been a stunning transformation.

An average of just over 71 points has been required to finish in the top seven in League Two over the past 10 years. If that’s the case this time around, Northampton need 20 points from nine games, a difficult but certainly not impossible task.

The play-offs have gone from highly unlikely to possible to very much realistic. If they do make the top seven this season, it will be quite some journey.

For player ratings, see the following link: Cobblers 1 Newport 0 player ratings in pictures

Nathan Wiseman-Trowse was found dead at his house on Hazelwood Road, Northampton, on March 8 last year.

The 45-year-old father was the programme leader and an associate professor in popular music at the University of Northampton and was a presenter on the N-Live student radio station.

At an inquest in to his death on Wednesday, March 13, the coroner heard how Dr Wiseman-Trowse had struggled in the year leading up to his death.

Dr Wiseman-Trowse called in sick to the university on the day of this death - but a colleague called the police out of concern for the lecturer when he was spotted that morning near the river by Becket's Park.

Police were able to gain access to his house but sadly found him dead at home.

His ex-wife Kelly Wiseman-Trowse told the coroner: "Nathan was a kind man who always tried to help his students and was dedicated to his job.

"He was passionate about music. He played guitar and enjoyed creating his own music, writing and drawing."

The music lecturer attended the University of Northampton to study English literature, media and popular culture and earned a PHd.

The coroner recorded a verdict of suicide as the cause of death.

Work is continuing on the David Wilson Homes Loxton Fields development in Whites Lane, Harlestone, where 52 new homes are being built.

The first home was reserved just 13 minutes after opening with further properties being snapped up thereafter.

Properties are a mix of three, four and five bedroom homes.

The team behind the development, which is opposite Harlestone Firs, has spoken about what makes Loxton Fields so popular with homebuyers in the area.

Site Manager John Nicholson said: “Loxton Fields is a unique development that is surrounded by woodland and countryside.

“We are expertly crafting 52 properties here that will meet the needs of modern homebuyers and have a great product range with something to suit everyone.

“As a team, we’re looking forward to creating a community that will last long after we finish on site.”

David Wilson Homes’ parent company, Barratt Developments, has been awarded a maximum five star rating for the ninth consecutive year in the 2018 Home Builders Federation Customer Satisfaction Survey.

They are the only major national housebuilder to have achieved the maximum five star rating for nine successive years.

Jason Hearn, Sales Director at David Wilson Homes South Midlands, said: “Our development Loxton Fields is already proving extremely popular with a range of buyers.

“Our award-winning service doesn’t end once the homes have been built. We offer a number of schemes to assist homebuyers in getting on or progressing on the property ladder, including Help to Buy, Part Exchange or Movemaker.

“We’re delighted with the beautiful homes and developments we continue to build each year and it’s even more rewarding to know the customers are just as pleased with the properties.”

At around 3.30pm yesterday, the two aircraft appeared to land close to the Barnes Meadow Interchange, having first hovered low above the A428 Bedford Road

Shortly afterwards the helicopters took off again before flying over Brackmills Industrial Estate.

The video above, sent into us by reader Gordon James, shows the aircraft taking off again. Mr James was standing by the Daily bread supermarket in Bedford Road at the time.

An RAF spokesperson said: “We can confirm that as part of routine training two RAF Pumas were operating at helicopter landing sites near Northampton yesterday”.

With less than three weeks to go until the end of the financial year the Northamptonshire county councillor in charge of finance says he is ‘greatly encouraged’ that the authority will balance its books.

Following last year’s £40m overspend all eyes are on the county authority to see whether it can end the year with its financial outgoings less than its incomings and now usually cautious Cllr Malcolm Longley is sounding optimistic.

The council, which is being overseen by two government appointed officials and new chief executive Theresa Grant, is currently predicting a £900,000 overspend- although the figures are expected to move.

Speaking at yesterday’s cabinet meeting Cllr Longley, who moved into the finance hotseat last summer, said: “Current year end outlook is just a little short of £1m negative,

“We are only three weeks away from year end so we are now very much a lot of clearing up and make sure we get things in good order.

“Expect not to move too much from there but if it does I’m hoping it will go marginally in the right direction.”

In the summer the authority was facing a predicted overspend of £64m for the 18/19 financial year. In November central government allowed the council a £70m capital dispensation, which meant it could use funds from the sale of assets to plug its revenue gap. The sale of its headquarters, which was brought by Canada Life for £64m last summer, has largely funded the gap . The authority also put £20m back into reserves.

Council leader Matt Golby paid tribute to the work of staff in getting the authority on a more stable financial footing.

He said: “Getting anywhere near a balanced budget has been an incredible challenge. It’s down to the hard work, graft and toil of the officers and staff.

“We have still got a bit of a way to go and still two periods to report on, that variance may go up and it may go down. We need to remember that July we were at £64.2m. It is an incredible achievement.”

The 2017/18 budget has not yet been signed off by auditors. This is expected to happen in April.