Brady wants to see an improvement as Cobblers take on 'buoyant' Grimsby

Cobblers boss Jon Brady has warned his players they must be up for a challenge from minute one when they take on Grimsby Town at Blundell Park this weekend.

Grimsby are back in the EFL after just one year away following a sensational play-off campaign in the National League last season.

They were beaten by Leyton Orient in their League Two opener last weekend but now play their first home game since returning from non-league and Blundell Park is likely to be rocking for the visit of the Cobblers.

That will provide an extra challenge for Brady and his players.

"First and foremost, congratulations to Grimsby on their promotion,” said Brady. “They did very well to go through the play-offs and win promotion to League Two.

"Obviously, we are well aware of the threats they pose and we will go there knowing it's their first home game back in the league and the crowd will be buoyant and they will be up for it.

"We have to make sure we are at our best to get the result that we desire.

"A lot of teams seem to be able to carry that momentum and have a strong season after promotion.

"They were beaten last weekend but Orient have some fantastic players with a good manager and Grimsby took the game to them and it was a lot more even than the scoreline suggests. We know it will be a real tough challenge."

Brady was pleased to start the season with Saturday's dramatic 3-2 win over Colchester but he was quick to admit that the performance is only the first step towards where they need to be.

The Town manager specifically wants his side to improve in possession after the way in which Colchester successfully managed to disrupt their flow, albeit aided by the officials.

"You always want to get that first win of the season and I'm glad we got it in the first game," said Brady. "There are always stuff we can improve on but I also thought there were some good things.

"When we have the ball, we need to play our way and move the ball quick and sharp but because it's still so early on in the season, I felt we were a bit rusty with that and there can be a lot of improvement in that respect."That will be a work in progress but the standard of the two open play goals was really good."