NEWPORT County AFC manager Justin Edinburgh is prepared to pay what could be a club record fee to bring goalkeeper Joe Day back from Peterborough United in January.

Day was a huge hit during his 93-day emergency loan with County, which ended with a record of just one defeat in 14 League Two games after Saturday’s 3-1 win at Bury.

Lenny Pidgeley or Jamie Stephens will fill in over the next five weeks, starting at Carlisle United on Saturday, but Edinburgh is confident he can secure Day’s return to Rodney Parade at the earliest opportunity.

The Exiles boss is in advanced talks with League One Peterborough and accepts that a fee – likely to be more than the £20,000 he paid for Christian Jolley in January 2013 – will be necessary.

“We’re pretty confident that Joe will be returning when the window reopens on January 3,” said Edinburgh.

“You are never over-confident until it’s done but he wants to come.

“We’ve agreed terms with Joe and near enough done that with Peterborough as well.

“He is out of contract in the summer but obviously we don’t want it to go that long and sometimes you have to make decisions that you feel are right in the short, medium and long term.

“So I feel that it is right for us to go and pay a fee for Joe.

“There is a negotiation there and we’re getting quite close.

“They’ve been very helpful and we’re not far away now.”

Edinburgh has refused to reveal whether Pidgeley or Stephens will play at Carlisle on Saturday but says whoever does start will do a good job for the team.

“We’ve been on a very good with Joe but we were fully aware that it could only be for 93 days,” said the manager.

“We’ve got two very good goalkeepers here and I have every confidence in Lenny Pidgeley and Jamie Stephens.

“They’re both fit and you can see that little bit of a competitive edge between them this week in training.

“They’ve both got an opportunity now. It may be short term but for the next four or five games that we have either one of them will come into the team.

“The good thing for either of them is that they’ll be coming into a team that is doing well.

“I know from being a player myself that you always want to play every week but if you’ve lost your place through injury or lack of form you always want to come back into a team that is on the up.”