Timlin suffered a broken leg in the 1-0 away win at Leyton Orient in the first leg of the Johnstone’s Paint Area Final at Brisbane Road.

But the midfielder has been making a steady road to recovery and, should he sign a new deal with the club, Brown says there’s a chance he will be fit and available at the start of pre-season.

Brown also revealed how the players under the age of 23 will return earlier than the senior squad for pre-season training in June.

Brown said: “Michael is coming along nicely, we just had word from the specialist, physio and doctors to say Michael will be somewhere near the starting line come the start of pre-season. 

“For me, that’s like a new signing because I’ve spoken to people about Michael and they’ve all been very positive.

“We’re back as an under-23 squad on the 10th June and those boys will have a good foundation for when seniors return on the 24th June. 

“Our first pre-season friendly against Great Wakering is on 6th July, so we’ll have a couple of weeks of good foundation training.

“Fortunately for everyone, Michael Timlin will be at the starting block which is a big plus.”