Brady wary of Peterborough United's quality as he tells players and fans to 'show their passion in a positive way'

Manager Jon Brady believes tomorrow’s derby against Peterborough United will be a good marker to see just how competitive the Cobblers are at League One level.

Posh have been a strong League One side in recent times, including last season when they missed out on the play-off final despite taking a 4-0 lead into the second leg of their semi-final against Sheffield Wednesday.

They’ll be expected to challenge for promotion again this season and so far it couldn’t be going any better as they look to make it four from four against their rivals at Sixfields this weekend.

"I've been reminded of what this game means by many people and I know that myself because I first came here more than seven years ago and I've experienced it from sitting in the stands,” said Brady.

"The only time I experienced this game as a manager was in COVID but it's different now. I know how important it is to both sets of supporters and we understand that but what we do ask is that everyone shows their passion is a positive way.

"We have two management teams who really respect each other. I know Scarffy (Kieran Scarff, Peterborough's assistant manager) really well but we'll set ourselves out to really be aggressive.

"They have been carving teams open already this season and they only narrowly missed out on promotion last year. They are always there or thereabouts at this level so to go up against them, it'll be a good marker to see how competitive we really are at this level.”

Cobblers have taken the game to their opponents in all three League One outings so far and tomorrow will be no different, but Brady doesn’t want his players to lose their heads on what could be a feisty afternoon at a sold-out Sixfields.

"We'll keep our temperament cool and calm and play the way we want to play,” he added. “What you can't do is go over the top. This is a league game and we're focused on trying to get three points at home.

"We know it's a derby but first and foremost we want to play as well as we can and try and win the game. It'll mean a lot just to get our first win on the board and that's our focus. I’m not worried too much about history or my own personal glory, I just want the players to perform at their best and that's the focus.”