John Sheridan will hand experienced midfielder Kevin Maher a chance to shine at Northampton tomorrow.

The 32-year-old has found senior action hard to come by so far, but boss Sheridan has confirmed he will be given his chance tomorrow.  That is likely to mean a demotion for either Mark Allott or Danny Whitaker.

Maher appeared as a substitute during last week's FA Cup draw at Cheltenham and impressed with a committed second-half display.

All the balls are still up in the air for Sheridan, who must make a number of selection decisions after a half-time reshuffle at Cheltenham last week.

Facing a 2-0 deficit at Whaddon Road, the Latics chief changed things around and was rewarded with a storming second-half comeback.

Shez will also have to decide whether to hand an immediate debut to new striker Darren Byfield, signed on loan from Doncaster Rovers.

Under boss Stuart Gray, Northampton have enjoyed a solid start to the new season and remain unbeaten in six League outings at home, drawing three and winning three.

They have scored 11 goals so far at home and, along with Leicester City, boast the League's best home defensive record with just five goals conceded.

But five away defeats and just one win on the road are limiting progress up the table at present, so Gray will be hoping his home comforts can be sustained.

Town are without a win in four games after winning three straight League contests in October.  They battled to a creditable 1-1 draw at Leeds United in the FA Cup last week.

But those four games were all away from home - and Town will go into tomorrow's game full of confidence having won each of their last two home matches, scoring a total of four goals while keeping two clean sheets.

The Cobblers are the last remaining side in League One with an unbeaten home record - and Athletic will want to have something to say about that tomorrow.

Sheridan has an almost fully-fit squad to choose from, with striker Matty Wolfenden coming back into the frame.  Meanwhile, Lee Hughes returns after serving a one-match ban.

Northampton are expected to include young defender Kyle Walker in their squad after he completed a loan move from Sheffield United yesterday.

Colin Larkin could come back into contention up front, but Chris Doig, Giles Coke and Adebayo Akinfenwa are all set to miss out.  Ex-Latic Leon Constantine could figure against his former side.

Commentary is live and exclusive on Latics World with Stu Vose and Roy Butterworth from 2.55pm.

Latics (from): Crossley, Eardley, Stam, Whitaker, Allott, Hughes, Lomax, Fleming, Hazell, Maher, Gregan, Wolfenden, Taylor, Lee, Liddell, Stephens, Jones, Smalley, Alessandra, Byfield.