Harding facing lengthy lay-off

Northampton midfielder Ben Harding will be out for between four and six weeks with the ankle injury he sustained at Dagenham.

Harding limped out of Town's 1-0 win in London last Tuesday after only seven minutes and left the ground on crutches.

He missed the goalless home draw against Chesterfield at the weekend and is set for an extended spell on the sidelines.

"We are looking at between four and six weeks for Ben," said manager Aidy Boothroyd. "He is the sort of lad that wants to get back as early as possible and the swelling has gone down quite a lot but with ankle ligaments you can't get them back too soon.

"It is a shame because he is a very good player for us. He has done well and he will be the first one to hope that the team keeps doing well while he is out so that we are in a nice position in the league when he comes back."

Boothroyd added: "We have Ben (Tozer) and Luke (Guttridge) in there at the moment and I might consider bringing someone in now."