Brady and Cobblers keep their counsel after Barton's 'rugby' comments

Jon Brady and the Cobblers will be keeping their counsel after Bristol Rovers manager Joey Barton caused a stir with his post-match comments following Saturday's encounter between the two teams.

The Rovers boss did not hold back after his side’s 1-0 victory at Sixfields, likening the Cobblers to a ‘glorified rugby team’ and accusing them of being ‘awful’ to watch.

"Before the game you could see that they obviously haven't cut the grass on the pitch, we were warming up and it was lively." said Barton, whose team are behind Northampton on goal difference. "They didn't water the pitch either.

"There are many, many ways to play football, and if I am honest with you, would I pay to come and watch Northampton? No, I wouldn't. They are awful to watch, they are a glorified rugby team."

Asked for his response to those comments a few days later, Brady said: "I would say that they didn't get it their own way in terms of how they wanted to play.

"With how we pressed, we stopped them playing and I think that was frustrating for them so I take it as a compliment.

"If he wants to talk about our style of play, then that's his opinion, but we will see what happens over the next few weeks and we will just keep quiet.

"There is no need for us to comment. We do our business in-house and we are a club that is very respectful of other clubs and other managers and we don't say things behind people's backs.

"We want to keep those values and those standards as a football club and as humans and as people."