'Bravery and belief' - Hogg wants to see more from Cobblers in attack
Cobblers boss Chris Hogg is hoping to see more of an attacking threat from his side when they go to Shrewsbury Town this weekend following their first win of the season.
Hogg has been pleased with Town’s defensive work having effectively shut down most of their opponents so far, but their attacking play needs some smoothing out.
"The defensive side of it is really good but it's still a work in progress for me and there's always phases of the game where you can be better,” said Hogg this week.
"You have to be hard to beat at any level and I think every successful team is built on that, but ultimately I want to enjoy what we produce with the ball and that's where a lot of work will be.
"That's a lot about belief and bravery and I'm constantly on at the boys about a lot of things and we have a very open group who will discuss it, work on it and try to get better.
"We've done some more work this week around how we're going to play and the approach to Saturday and ultimately the players are the competitions who have to go out there and do it.
"Us on the outside, as fans and coaches, we don't know that feeling on the pitch and the bravery and belief that it takes to play the way we want to play. I think we'll keep getting better with that.”
Cobblers have found themselves in dangerous areas at times this season but the final pass, cross or shot has often let them down.
“Rhythm is a big part of it,” added Hogg. “Sometimes it can be a bit clunky but the more you work on it and the more you get in there, the smoother it becomes and you find more space. It’s just connections.
"There's no right or wrong way to play the game but I want to see us attacking and playing forward and taking shots.
"Being hard to beat gives you confidence to go and do that but people have to step up and go and express themselves and show their personality and go and own it. As managers and coaches, we can tweak certain bits to help them but they have to believe in themselves and go and show their quality because I see it every day in training.
“I keep banging on about consistency with them and we have to have a ruthless mindset that we’re going to produce shots, crosses and goals.”