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Moult shines again as Cobblers hit back to earn replay

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Louis Moult provided another piece of evidence that he can replace Alex Nicholls in the Cobblers forward line with a second goal in as many games to secure an FA Cup replay against Bradford City.

The 20-year-old, who notched against Port Vale after coming on as a substitute last weekend, started against his former club and provided a second-half equaliser to ensure the teams will meet again at Valley Parade a week on Tuesday.

It was a game played to a backdrop of almost complete silence and with a matching low-key feel.

Neither side were in any great hurry, a fact illustrated by the Cobblers’ willingness to keep the ball at the back among their three centre-backs.

The Bradford defence was a patched-up unit following the loss to injury of brutally effective central duo Andrew Davies and the giant Luke Oliver and changes were made elsewhere, with Sixfields specialist Nahki Wells left on the bench.

Adebayo Akinfenwa was the first player to witness the whites of the goal posts, but his header on nine minutes was more fluff that force – due to the presence of a close man-marker – and former Cobblers keeper Matt Duke gathered it comfortably.

Town’s offside trap was working well until the point Garry Thompson breached it with a perfectly-timed curved run. Kelvin Langmead, though, recovered to make a fine block.

Suddenly, the game was alive. Louis Moult had been outmuscled in a couple of situations but found the shoulder strength to wedge himself between the defenders and head a Chris Hackett cross down, only for Duke to expertly make the save.

Huws then backheeled one into Hackett’s path for a thrashed shot that Duke palmed clear for a corner but the opening goal went the way of the visitors.

Alan Connell – in the side for Wells – made ground down the right and cut back to prevent onrushing midfielder Will Atkinson with the simplest of finishes.

Bradford assumed the kind of dominance a lead traditionally provides, although the ball was in their net after a goal-line skirmish at a second-half corner; sadly for the Cobblers, it had gone out of play during its flight.

Their equalising goal came from that side. Danny East had time to pick a good ball in, and Moult met it with a firm header that gave Duke no chance.

Northampton looked to seize the initiative at that point, bringing on youth-team striker David Moyo for centre-back Anthony Charles and switching to a 4-4-2 system.

They rode their luck in the final five minutes when Nahki Wells, so often the scourge of Sixfields and on as a substitute, broke clear and appeared to be fouled in the box by Langmead.

The referee waved the strong appeals away and minutes later blew for full-time on the tie.

Cobblers: Higgs, East, Johnson, Langmead, Charles (Moyo 72), Widdowson, Huws, Tozer, Hackett, Akinfenwa, Moult (Platt 80)

Subs not used: Snedker, Mukendi, Wilson, Hornby, Demontagnac

Bradford City: Duke, Darby, Doyle, McHugh, Meredith, R Jones, G Jones (McArdle 81), Brown, Atkinson, Thompson (Hanson 75), Connell (Wells 75)

Subs not used: McLaughlin, Baker, Hines, McArdle, Bass

Attendance: 2,512

Away fans: 281




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