Buckle thrilled as Spiller finally returns for Town

The 31-year-old was one of Buckle’s major acquisitions during the close season, but an achilles injury has consigned him to the sidelines.

Spiller finally made his comeback during a 4-0 development squad defeat to a Charlton Athletic XI on Tuesday afternoon, to the delight of his watching manager.

Buckle said: “Spiller came through 20-25 minutes, but he showed some of the touches as to why we brought him to the club.

“We’re delighted with that and we’re hopeful of no reaction so he’ll be a stage further.

“If you look at possibly where we’ve been a little bit light this season, it has been in midfield.

“Certainly having him back, albeit in the early stages, is encouraging and I’m delighted for Dan because he and Simon (Parsell, Town’s physiotherapist) have worked hard to get the foot right and hopefully now he can kick on.”

It wasn’t just on-the-pitch matters that Buckle was enthusing about either as he continued: “There were so many pluses.

“The boys did really well against a strong Charlton team, but it’s always good as these games are invaluable for lots of reasons.

“It was good to talk to Chris Powell (Charlton boss) and all the staff there.

“We spoke about players and potential targets for the future too.”

Young midfielder Matt Robinson played 90 minutes, while he was also on the bench for Town’s 2-0 win over Nuneaton on Saturday as Buckle remains pleased with the teenager’s progress.

He said: “We brought Matt in over the summer as a development player first and foremost.

“He’s a strong boy and is getting stronger every day.

“Is he ready to go in at the start? Probably not at the moment, but he’s pushing and that’s what we look for in a young player.

“He’s looking to improve all the time and it was a nice step forward for him in the right direction.”