Boss Jon Brady says the big characters in his squad have been the key reason behind Brackley Town’s recent unbeaten run.
The Saints have put a mini run of back-to-back defeats to bed by recording five games without defeat in recent weeks.
They may have seen their season crumble after a 4-3 defeat at Arlesey in the FA Cup and a 6-1 league humbling at the hands of Harrogate.
But Brady’s bunch stayed strong during the time of trouble and head into this weekend’s game at home to Stalybridge sitting top of the Blue Square Bet North.
“Big characters come back from big defeats,” said the Saints supremo. “And we’ve got a lot of big characters in our side.
“Those defeats were a warning to show what happens when we’re not at the races so we know we need to be at our best and if we are, we will get results.”
Saturday’s opponents Stalybridge should pose plenty of problems but Brady is confident his men can get the better of the 11th-placed side.
“They were a very good team last season and they are full-time,” he said. “We know they’re a tough team but we’re good at home.”
Meanwhile, Brackley have snapped up centre-back Tom Sharpe on a non-contract basis - and boss Brady believes he has the potential to be a class act for the club.
The former Kidderminster Harriers captain has been recovering from a cruciate ligament injury and has recently played for Brackley’s Blue Square Bet North rivals Hinckley.
But Brady, who has lost defender Wayne Hatswell to retirement, moved quickly to sign 24-year-old Sharpe.
He said: “Tom has played the last five games for Hinckley but he came back too soon.
“We think it will take four to eight weeks to get him fit and if we can do that he will be a class player.”
KETTERING TOWN
Ritchie Jeune is hoping Kettering Town will know where they will play their next two home games by the start of next week.
Jeune set up a one-game agreement with Corby Town chairman Kevin Ingram for the Poppies to play their ‘home’ game with Redditch United at Steel Park last weekend in a bid to get the club’s Evo-Stik Southern League Premier Division campaign up and running again.
Ingram held an open meeting with Steelmen supporters on Wednesday night to address any concerns and explain the situation from his point of view.
During the meeting, Ingram revealed initial discussions over a further arrangement for Kettering to play in Corby up until January 1 at a cost of £1,000 a game, as well as paying a £5,000 bond up front.
He also said he believed a proposed takeover of the Poppies could happen next week with a consortium still apparently holding talks with majority shareholder Imraan Ladak.
Kettering have been through a torrid season so far with their Nene Park home becoming unusable due to the electricity being cut off and they currently have a new-look squad in place, thrown together by manager Alan Doyle.
Jeune has been helping the Poppies in a voluntary capacity and while he admitted Steel Park is a preferred venue, he also revealed Kettering have spoken with other clubs in the area who have offered their facilities.
“My personal preference would be Steel Park,” Jeune said.
“It is an excellent stadium with all the facilities in place and it meets the criteria for the Southern League.
“Obviously there will be clashes with home games with Corby and that is something that would need to be addressed but I think it is the best venue for Kettering supporters.
“But there is no deal done with anyone and other clubs have offered their facilities as well. We are grateful to all of them.
“We asked Kevin about the possibility of us coming back and he has since come back to us with what is required by Corby.
“There is a lot of speculation going around about the future and the consortium that is interested in a takeover of the club.
“We will have to see what happens with that. But in the meantime, we have to try to get something sorted out for the next two home games and I would hope that will be done sooner rather than later.”
Both Ingram and Jeune have moved to ease fans’ fears of a future merger between the Poppies and Steelmen following that initial one-game agreement made last week.
The Poppies are on the road this weekend when they head to Arlesey Town, having lost 2-1 at unbeaten Leamington on Tuesday night.
CORBY TOWN
Chris Plummer has confirmed Corby Town hotshot Josh Moreman is beginning to attract the attention of clubs in the Football League.
The young striker has made a huge impact at Steel Park this season and his 13th goal in all competitions helped secure a dramatic 3-2 success over Wealdstone in Wednesday night’s FA Carlsberg Trophy third qualifying round replay.
And Steelmen boss Plummer has revealed that Moreman, who joined Corby from United Counties League side Deeping in the summer, spent the early part of this week training at npower League One side Stevenage while League Two high-fliers Gillingham have also expressed an interest.
Moreman is on a contract at Steel Park, meaning Corby will be entitled to a fee should any offers come in.
But Plummer is hoping he will have the chance to continue working with Moreman for a while yet after the striker bounced back from being sent off for dissent in the 1-1 draw in London last weekend to become the hero in the replay.
“Josh is a young lad who has moved up the levels and he is still learning,” Plummer said.
“It was a harsh lesson for him on Saturday and it’s disappointing for us because it means we lose him for a couple of games. But he is still learning and hopefully he won’t make the same mistake again.
“We all know his capabilities. He has that raw talent, he’s got goals in his boots, he has pace and he is aggressive.
“We just need to channel his all-round game now. He was quite poor in the first half on Wednesday if I am being honest and then he was a real threat in the second half.
“He had one cleared off the line and then he has got the winner in the dying moments. We know there is lots to work on but he certainly has the raw materials.
“He trained with Stevenage in the early part of this week and Gillingham are keen to have a look at him as well so there are clubs looking at him. I know there were other scouts there last night as well.
“There is interest but he is under contract and he is Corby Town player. We would like to see all our players move on and do better for themselves but we are enjoying having the squad we have got at the moment.
“He is scoring goals and grabbing headlines but there have been no offers yet so we will all carry on as we are.”
Plummer, meanwhile, was in no doubt that Corby deserved their win over Wealdstone, which sets up a first-round clash with Blue Square Bet South outfit Hayes & Yeading United a week on Saturday.
The Corby manager added: “I thought it was a the right result in the end.
“We bossed much of the game and created chances but we couldn’t take them. Thankfully, we got there in the end.
“It is frustrating to miss those chances but it’s good we are creating the opportunities and I would be more worried if that wasn’t happening.
“We are a bit disappointed with the goals we conceded and they have had a great chance just before we got the winner as well.
“There are still things for us to work on but I am pleased we are through.”
Corby are back in action at Steel Park on Saturday when they take on Oxford City in the Blue Square Bet North.
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