BEN HARDING is planning on hitting the goal trail for the Cobblers this season, and he’s hoping new signing Clive Platt can be his provider.
The pair combined for Harding’s goal in Tuesday night’s pre-season friendly with Derby County at Sixfields, with Platt nodding a long ball into the midfielder’s path, and he lashed the ball home from the edge of the box.
And after the match Harding, who has only scored 18 goals in a nine-year professional career, revealed that the pair also had some success when they played together at MK Dons.
“I need to score more goals, so hopefully I can bring that into my game this season,” admitted Harding, who failed to find the net in 17 games for the Cobblers after signing from Wycombe in January.
“A couple of seasons ago when I was at MK I did score a few.
“I had been out injured, then I came back in the January and I scored some goals between then and the end of the season.
“So hopefully I can repeat that, and that was playing alongside Platty as well.
“So with him coming to Northampton, I am hoping I can score a few more goals.”
Harding looked very sharp as he enjoyed a good game against the Rams, revealing after the game that it is the first time he has played for the club pain free.
The midfielder had an Achilles problem when he signed and played through the pain barrier before finally admitting defeat following the 0-0 draw at Hereford United on April 21.
He has since undergone four months of intensive physio on the problem, and is keeping his fingers crossed that he is now 100 per cent fit.
He is also keeping his fingers crossed that the Cobblers can launch a promotion bid this season, but he isn’t going to start making bold predicitions.
“We have looked at it as a squad, and we are just going to be very positive,” said Harding.
“We are taking that into the season, we want to get a good start, and who knows that can happen from there?
“If we can get some good results early on, get some good points on the board in the first six games or whatever, than that can hopefully get us on a roll.
“Everybody that has come in to the club has been fantastic.
“We have great squad morale, everybody gets on very well and that is a massive positive for us.”
And he added: “Everybody is really looking forward to the cup game against Cardiff and then the start of the league season.
“Hopefully we can push on, take the good points we have produced in pre-season, and take that into the start of the campaign.”
Harding is set to line up in central midfield in tomorrow’s pre-season friendly with a Totttenham Hotspur XI at Sixfields (ko 3pm).
It is Town’s penultimate warm-up game before they start their campaign in earnest in the Capital One League Cup clash with Cardiff City on Tuesday, August 14.
Their final friendly is next Tuesday (Aug 7) against a West Ham United XI.