Brady stresses the need for Cobblers to be able to 'control' games in League One

Manager Jon Brady has underlined the importance of Cobblers being able to ‘control’ games in League One this season, especially when they go away from home to some of the big boys in the division.

Northampton have enjoyed more of the ball in three of their five matches so far and currently have one of the highest average possession counts in the league, which is in stark contrast to previous seasons at this level.

They dominated most of Saturday’s game at Cheltenham and came away with a 1-0 victory, but the ability to control games and enjoy periods of possession will be particularly important in games where they are big underdogs.

"We've had a lot of shots but only two on target against Cheltenham,” said Brady. “I don't think it tells the full story because if you watched the game, we dominated possession and had a lot of the ball.

"We're playing to the strengths of our side and I feel that's important. It's great to see that the players are confident enough to take the ball and get on it because that's really important in this league.

"Cheltenham isn't necessarily one of the bigger pitches but when you go to the likes of Wigan or Bolton or Derby, you're going to need to have some control because otherwise you'll just be chasing shadows all day.

"We're trying to work to the strengths of the team and give them some clear pictures and have trust in them. It feels good at the moment but we still need that final edge to us, which would be the icing on the cake.”

Whilst Cobblers struggled to convert possession into clear-cut chances against Cheltenham, they did have two strong penalty shouts turned down. Curtis Davies was at the heart of both incidents but neither his supposed trip on Mitch Pinnock nor his tangle with Tyreece Simpson were deemed spot-kicks.

"We had the penalty shouts,” Brady added. “There’s the second one with Mitch in the first half – not the first where he does get the ball – and then in the second half Davies tries to stop Simpson running so he falls on the back of him and brings him down.

"We've had a lot of penalty shouts already this season and there's no playacting or simulation or anything like that. We got the win so I don't want to moan and overall I thought the referee had a good game, but maybe we're due one.”