Calderwood 'has the best of every world' in his new role back at Cobblers

The 60-year-old, who led Northampton to promotion from League Two as manager in 2006, was Jon Brady’s assistant between 2021 and 2023 but then left the club to team up with Russell Martin at Southampton.

However, after Martin was let go by Saints in December 2024, Calderwood returned to Sixfields the following month in the role of technical director, which encompasses all of the club's footballing operations, including overseeing recruitment.

The former Scottish international, who played 36 times for his country, has a wealth of experience both as a player and a coach and he is using all of his knowledge, and his impressive contacts book, to help Cobblers be a success in League One.

"I feel I have the best of every world,” said Calderwood. “You can have an impact though coaching and you're out there and involved in it, and then the analysis of the opposition and the debrief of games is probably central to where I hope my strengths are.

"The other side of it is to take my experience that I've gained and everything I've learned, because I've lived a wee bit over the last 22 years, and broaden it out down to the academy and beyond the under-18s and help with everything else around that.

"The recruitment was running quite nicely with Alex (Latimer) heading it up before I came in but I have an involvement in that, and it's also about making sure the medical department and the strength and conditioning side of it is as good as we can make it with what's available to us.

"It's all about marginal improvements in terms of buildings and facilities and you can see that all around the training ground. They are little indicators that we're moving in the right direction and we're moving with the times.

"We also have to look outside the box to see how different we can be to not only keep us as a sustainable League One club but so we can challenge anyone in this league."