Mark Cooper's Kettering side have scored just once in three games

Kettering manager Mark Cooper has urged his players to sharpen up in front of goal or miss out on a play-off place.

The Poppies failed to make up ground on their promotion rivals with Saturday's 1-0 home defeat by Eastbourne.

"We defend like Trojans but don't score enough goals, it's as simple as that," Cooper told BBC Radio Northampton.

"Good strikers cost a lot of money. We've got what we've got, and we plough on. But if we carry on like that, we're not going to win anything."

Only four teams in this season's Blue Square Premier (the bottom three and 19th-placed Woking) have scored fewer goals than the Poppies, who have hit just 37 in 32 games - and only one in their last three.

But, although Kettering remain nine points off the play-offs in 10th, they have games in hand over all the teams above them.

Cooper's busy side face two evening home matches this week, against Lewes on Tuesday night and Oxford United on Thursday night, before travelling to Weymouth at the weekend.

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