Veteran Ward is now in charge of Tuesday night's opponents Bristol Rovers and has engineered an upturn in fortunes since taking over.
Speaking to the official BRFC website about the threat posed by the Cobblers he said: "They are a team that scores goals and are a top six side because they are effective. They have a management team, in Aidy Boothroyd and Andy King, who know how to get out of this league."
Town, meanwhile, have allowed defender David Artell to join Blue Square Premier side Wrexham on loan until the end of the season.
"David has found his opportunities limited," said Boothroyd in a club statement.
"He is fit again now and he needs to be playing regular football. We have a lot of competition for places in defence and it won't do David any good to be sat on the bench."