Northampton Town boss Chris Wilder has confirmed that he has received 'big interest' regarding two of his players.

Midfield pair Joel Byrom and Jason Taylor have been attracting attention of bigger clubs, but Wilder has ended any possibility of the duo leaving by extending their contracts.

Both players have signed two years deals last week, with Wilder delighted with the speed of the deals.

Any further contracts he will negotiate after the Cobblers final game of the season at home to Wycombe, but the pair were important for Wilder to confirm immediately.

"They'll have had obvious interest from other clubs," said Wilder to Northampton News.

"We have to take that into account because of how well they've done for us. People ask 'why haven't we dealt with the other ones?"

"These ones we had to deal with as there was big interest from other clubs. The boys didn't want to go elsewhere, but you have to respect the fact other clubs have shown interest and they've got to look after themselves as well, so we decided to do those at the appropriate time."

Wilder said that the pair had been 'pivotal' in his sides upturn in fortunes and results, despite his team missing out on the playoffs this season.

Wilder added that he was happy with his sides progress from last season, in which he helped the club avoid relegation.

"Getting into the top ten will be an achievement from where we were last year. Ultimately we're disappointed because we feel we should have got a little bit closer to the play-offs."

Wilder added; "But we learn the lesson from this year, build again in the summer and as I said regarding the Burton situation it's very rare you stick a load of players together and they go and get automatic promotion."

The Cobblers currently sit in 10th place in Sky Bet League Two, having amassed 61 points from 45 league games.

Northampton Town fans..... Would you be gutted to lose this duo? Or can you live without them?  Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!