RELIEF, BELIEF AS ASH SCORES A GOAL...

CONFIDENCE: that ethereal yet indispensable ingredient for success.

When it leaves you, it’s tough to get it back: there are times when a fog of inhibition descends and it seems as though nothing can be done to clear it.

That is exactly how it felt watching Northampton at Rochdale on Tuesday evening. Without a win in seven league games, still bruised by shipping six at home against Bristol Rovers a fortnight ago, the Cobblers were in the midst of an incredible 670 minute goal drought.

Conservative and hesitant in possession, drained of any vim or vigour, they were two down with 20 minutes remaining and in that rut they looked firmly entrenched.

Then, from nothing, one fleeting moment jolted the Cobblers to life. Ash Taylor stooped to nod the ball into the net from a corner to end the barren run. Relief. Belief! The surge in confidence was palpable.

Suddenly, Northampton were zipping the ball around, surging forward in numbers. The equaliser arrived eight minutes later, courtesy of leftback David Buchanan, who struck from inside the Rochdale penalty area having barely ventured over the half-way line all evening.

They nearly won it, too. John-Joe O’Toole won a penalty three minutes from time, only to see his spot-kick saved by Josh Lillis.

It never fails to amaze me how one moment can engender such a transformation. The Cobblers need it to be a moment that reinvigorates their season.