On 9 February 2007, he joined Northampton Town on a month's loan. He made his league debut in Northampton's 1–0 loss to Nottingham Forest, but received praise from manager Stuart Gray for his performance. He scored his first goal for Northampton in a 2–1 win over Scunthorpe on 8 April 2007. His loan was extended to the end of the 2006–07 season on 8 March 2007, returning to Reading in time to skipper the reserve team in the Premier Reserve League national final. In the final, Reading were crowned champions after a 2–0 win over Bolton Wanderers, with goals from Alan Bennett and Pearce, to secure the trophy that had been won by Manchester United for the previous two years.