WILKIN PLANS A HIGH NOON
Brackley bank on forgotten man
MARK Noon could be set to make his Brackley Town debut this afternoon – six years after hanging up his boots!
The former Coventry City midfielder has not played competitively since suffering a double leg break whilst playing for Nuneaton Town in 2012. He retired two years later and joined the Saints as assistant to manager Kevin Wilkin.
But with the departures of defender Thierry Audel, striker Dan Holman and loanee Wes York leaving Brackley short of numbers ahead of today’s playoff eliminator at home to Gateshead, the 36-year-old has been ushered back into training.
“We are depleted,” admitted Wilkin, whose attempts to sign replacements were frustrated by a league panel.
“Since the end of the season, we’ve lost a lad we had on loan, plus two other regulars. One had been released and didn’t want to jeopardise a potential move by getting injured. Very much like Lyle Taylor, the lad at Charlton. He has to look after himself, which we understand.
“Another lad had personal issues to sort out. I wish the directive from the league had been a bit clearer about getting cover in, but it is what it is.
“The upshot is that Mark will probably be on the bench, or at least very close to it. He’s been parked up for a while and – like all of us – he isn’t getting any younger.
“But he’s still in good nick and if he had to come on then he’d still be very capable. I’m sure of that.”
Brackley played a friendly against Slough Town last weekend, winning 3-2. It was, says Wilkin, a valuable taster of what is to come at an empty St James Park.
“Like everyone, we’ve watched the Premier League games on TV,” he added. “You look at it, try to get a feel for it. But with the crowd noise overdubbed, it feels pretty much like a normal game.
“Playing against Slough allowed us to get used to playing in silence, getting changed alone, all the other protocols we’ll have to follow come Sunday.
“It’s a very strange situation, but if the lads can ignore that and play to what they’re capable of then we’ll give Gateshead a game.”
Wilkin isn’t expecting home advantage to count for much. “Especially when you look at some of Gateshead’s results on the road, like beating Boston before lockdown,” he said.
But the former Wrexham boss insists his players are fit and sharp after the enforced break – and ready to propel the Saints to a potential semi-final against Boston United.
“The lads came back with a real eagerness,” said Wilkin. “Saturday’s game gave us some bumps and bruises, and a couple needed a rest this week. But boys now look after themselves to a good degree. We’ve got some real athletes in that group, a good bit of talent, and hopefully that will show against Gateshead.”