Brady pleased with 'gritty' and 'determined' Cobblers after 'turgid' win over Carlisle United

Cobblers boss Jon Brady admitted it won’t win any awards for game of the season but he was nonetheless pleased with the ‘gritty’ and ‘determined’ nature of his side’s performance in Saturday’s 2-0 win over Carlisle United.

The blustery conditions made for an extremely disjointed and bitty game at Sixfields but Town got the job done as Kieron Bowie’s first half finish and a spectacular individual goal from Ali Koiki in stoppage-time officially confirmed their League One status for another season.

"The wind and the conditions made it quite a turgid game today and it was hard for both teams,” admitted Brady. "We actually wanted to win the toss before kick-off and turn them around so we'd have the wind behind us but obviously we lost it and we had to go against the wind.

"The first half was really difficult and we couldn't get out but we were gritty and determined and it was great to get the result in the end.”

Carlisle joined Northampton in winning promotion last season but defeat at Sixfields confirmed that they will make an immediate return to the fourth tier.

Brady added: "You feel for Carlisle, before the game you have to be focused and there's no room for any sympathy but I had a chat with Paul Simpson afterwards and they are a good club with good people.

"We have similar budgets so it shows how well we've done and it's taken a lot of hard work from everyone."