Boss Edinburgh delighted to get off the mark after Cobblers power past Coventry

Justin Edinburgh oversaw his first win as Cobblers boss on Saturday. Picture by Kirsty Edmonds

Appointed as Rob Page’s successor two weeks ago, Edinburgh’s first game in charge ended in a 5-3 defeat at MK Dons, but it was a much different story seven days later.

Helped by an early red card to City captain Jordan Willis, the Cobblers motored to victory thanks to Keshi Anderson’s superb second-half hat-trick.

Edinburgh said: “It was difficult circumstances today in terms of Coventry losing a man very early because it’s never as easy to beat 10 men as people expect.

“I thought our game-management today was very good. We denied Coventry any real chances and we were clinical when ours came along.

“You always want to the man advantage but it doesn’t always make it easy because teams are drilled.

“But I thought the way we switched the play was key for us and we really were on the front-foot and we deserved the win.

“I’ve got to get to know them and they’ve got to get to know me because we’re changing the style of play and we’re trying to imprint that on them.

“Credit to the players because they’re picking it up very quickly and I thought we looked secure and solid, albeit against 10 men.

“I think Coventry had one shot near the end so the players deserve a lot of credit for that.”

After struggling to penetrate Coventry’s defensive effort in the first-half, Northampton improved markedly after half-time and ultimately deserved their three goals and three points.

“We encouraged both full-backs to play high and wide and I thought Luke Williams and Hiram Boateng both got into some really good positions,” added Edinburgh.

“I thought Luke was very effective today and he’ll only get better once the fitness improves.

“We got good width and I thought we used the switch of play well and penetrated a lot more in the second-half than we did first.”

The afternoon was marred by ugly scenes at several stages during the game with referee Lee Probert forced to take the players from the field on three separate occasions due to protests from Coventry fans.

On that, Edinburgh said: “It was extremely disappointing and frustrating. I understand Coventry supporters’ frustration because it’s sad to see their club in the situation it is.

“It was frustrating for us but the players’ concentration was excellent today because it’s not easy to stop and start and keep coming off, and they dealt with it very well.”