Crosby set to commit to Cobblers
The Cobblers are confident that Malcolm Crosby will this week put pen to paper on a three-year deal to join manager Ian Sampson's backroom staff.
The 55-year-old former Sunderland and Oxford United boss has spent the weekend weighing up the deal offered to him by the Northampton board. Crosby's input through a successful recent spell for the club has been substantial, and his presence in the dug-out has been vital to rookie Sampson.
He has now relocated full-time to Oxford and is highly likely to conclude a deal for the same length as the first-team manager, who guided the side to a sixth away win in seven matches at Port Vale at the weekend.
Adebayo Akinfenwa scored his 15th goal of the campaign, along with strikes from Abdul Osman and Billy McKay in a 3-1 triumph that leaves the Cobblers within three points of the Coca-Cola League Two top seven.
Sampson is confident the deal to keep Crosby can be sealed in the early stages of the week, putting what he calls 'a good little team' into the boot room until 2013.
"Hopefully it will be done in the next couple of days because I think we've got a good little team going here," he said. "He hasn't made a decision yet, he was due to think about it over the weekend but fingers crossed he will sign because he has been a big help to me.
"Malcolm is based in Oxford now, he's sold his house in Northallerton and that shows he is committed to what we're doing here. Ideally he can have three good years here and then he can retire."
Sampson also confirmed on Saturday that he has verbally agreed a one-year deal with Paul Rodgers, who had a big hand in two of the goals at Vale Park.
Town looked a class act in the first half of the game but were less of a force in the second half as the home side pressed for a way back into the game.
Sampson also had to withdraw McKay, who was exhausted after a full game for the Northern Ireland under-21s in midweek.
"I thought some of our play was really good in the first half, we opened them up quite a few times with the pace of Liam Davis and Paul Rodgers," he said.
"Some of our link-up play to Bayo and Billy McKay was very pleasing and the game was quite stretched in the first half. Billy is full of confidence at the moment and you can see that in his work rate and his movement.
"We had to take him off because he was tired. He played 90 minutes for Northern Ireland in the week and the pitch on Saturday just started to cut up so we gave him a rest."
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Friday 10 February 2012
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