TOWN boss Mark Cooper could be bringing out the secret hand signals this Saturday as he looks to tactically out-do his opposite number Graham Alexander in the Fleetwood dugout.

In their recent run of success Cooper has arranged his midfield slightly differently than he was earlier in the season. Whereas previously Town would operate with one holding midfielder and two further forward, recently that has been switched around and successfully provided more defensive solidity.

Posed with the slightly less potent Cod Army and a full complement of players to choose from, Cooper could return to that more adventurous set-up employed to such great effect at Chesterfield and against Sheffield United.

With a week of preparation behind them, Town’s squad are well drilled enough to change seamlessly mid-match and that flexibility is something the boss could well exploit tomorrow.

“(The players) know we can give them a little signal and they can change from a one and two, to a two and a one. We’ve got loads of secret handsigns for that,” said Cooper with a tongue in cheek.

“It is an option we’ve got, it’s whether we do it at the start of the game then change it.

“It’s something we have looked at, I think with the way we play we can be pretty flexible.”

Town do not just have options tactically but, with Jack Stephens emergence in the role at the base of the midfield in Yaser Kasim’s absence, Cooper also has choices to make in terms of selection as well.

The County Ground chief has been extremely impressed with Stephens’ in recent weeks, and now has a serious decision to make over who he opts to start against Fleetwood.

“I think Jack Stephens has done very, very well, it’s a good problem for me to have with the midfield players that we’ve got,” Cooper added.

“If I change it some people will say why did you change it? If I don’t change it and we don’t win people will say well you should have changed it because they’re the best players.

“So we have to look at who we’re playing against and decide what’s the best way to approach it.

“It is a hard decision but that is a question you get posed when you’ve got a lot of good players.”