NORTHAMPTON Town manager Chris Wilder has warned his players to expect a vastly improved performance from Newport County AFC when the sides meet at Sixfields on Saturday, writes Andrew Penman.

County were beaten 4-0 at Cambridge United last week amid speculation that the match could be Justin Edinburgh’s last in charge of the Exiles.

But, with Edinburgh having committed to the club and ended speculation that he would take over at League One Gillingham, Wilder expects a tough test this weekend.

“They’ll obviously be wanting to show a reaction from a disappointing day they’ve had at Cambridge,” said the Cobblers boss.

“But they've not had too many disappointing days in the past couple of months and that’s resulted in them being where they are.

“They've shown a consistency all the way through and that’s what we’re all after.

“They’re a tough team to play against and they played really well on the day [in the 3-2 win against Northampton in September].

“They play proper football, they compete when they have to compete and they play in the right areas, whatever formation they play. I think we’d all like our teams to be like that.

“They're defensively strong, they win battles and going forward they will be positive. They’ve got a good mix and are deservedly up there.”

Wilder’s side go into the game in 15th position in League Two after recording back-to-back wins for only the second time in the league this season.

And he has no new injury worries ahead of the Exiles' visit, with only long term absentees Kaid Mohamed and Ian Morris unavailable.

The manager, who has released six players in the last fortnight, suggested he is likely to name the same team for a fourth successive game.

“We’re okay, hopefully we don’t pick up any [injuries] this week and I don’t think there’s going to be many surprised by our team selection,” he said.

“If we can pick the same team for the fourth game it’ll be as good as it has been all season.

“I've loved it that we've shortened the numbers and tightened the group up but we still have to have competition for places and hopefully if we have that we can continue what we’re doing at the moment.”