Carlisle United manager Paul Simpson says his team are itching to get back out and play again tonight after being side-lined by the freeze.
He said ahead of the trip to Northampton: “Our lads are chomping at the bit. They just want to get out on some grass, that’ll be a novelty for them.
“You want to play football, you want to be playing in matches, you don’t want to be training and doing the stuff we’ve got them doing at the moment.”
But Simpson knows Northampton will be stiff opposition at Sixfields.
“They’re a good side with a good home and away record. We know it’ll be tough, but I’ll imagine they’ll look at us and think the same.
“They’re just a tough side to play against in general. Both Hoskins and Pinnock can cause problems, they have strikers with energy about them and they have a set way of playing, developed over the last few seasons, which has been effective.
“They are one of the fancied teams and they’re having a right go in terms of the financial backing they’re getting. It’s just the next game for us and we have to deal with it properly.
“I just look at, if I compare the two sides, us and them, there’s not a hell of a lot between us. We’ve just got to make sure we go and perform, that’s what matters. They’ll be expecting a tough game off us.
We’ve had a good 20 games in the league and, as I’ve said many times, the next one is the most important and we hope that after 21 we’re in an even better position.
“We’ve done well in this type of game against sides who are pushing. Even when I look at the Orient game, where we had a fantastic start, without the sending off it would have been a proper match for them.
“We’ve done ok against the top sides and against the other sides, and we’ve just got to keep it going. There are 26 games to go and this is the next one for us.”
