Cobblers' detailed preparation pays off after being caught by surprise against Walsall

Goalkeeper Tom King has revealed how Cobblers’ detailed preparation for every match proved vital against Walsall last weekend after they were initially caught by surprise at how the visitors lined up.

Town had expected Conor Wilkinson to lead the line alongside Jamille Matt, but instead it was Matty Stevens who came straight in for a debut just a few days after joining Walsall on loan from Forest Green Rovers.

Cobblers moved to a back three in anticipation of Wilkinson starting but they were quick to adjust and actually had the better of the first-half albeit without creating too many chances. The game finished goalless.

King said: "You can over analyse sometimes and I have done that in my career where you spend hours and hours through the week preempting what's going to come and you get to Saturday and it's a different side.

"We thought they would play Conor Wilkinson up top with Jamille Matt. That wasn't the case on the day but we were also ready for a different challenge with Matty Stevens running in behind and the wing-backs coming in off the edges, so we were prepared for everything.

"Algs (James Alger) and all the other staff here prepare us for all different scenarios but you have to take each game as it comes and always be ready because you never know what to expect.

"You could score in the first five minutes and then the game and the dynamic completely changes, so we were keen to get into half-time 0-0 and then go from there, but it turned out that the second-half was very scrappy. You try and take as many positives as you can and we want to build on those positives.”

The goalless draw meant a second successive clean sheet and two in three Cobblers appearances for King, but he admitted he’d rather win the game.

"It was a bit bittersweet on Saturday,” he added. “I got a lot more messages congratulating me on two clean sheets in a row but I'm there thinking I'd rather win 7-6 and take the three points than keep a clean sheet in a 0-0.

"These personal accolades and landmarks mean nothing. You come to a side like Northampton and there's only one thing which matters and that's the result.

"You have to go and get a positive result every week because that's what the fans demand and that's what we demand from ourselves in the dressing room.

"The coaching staff put that on us. We aren't after individual accolades, we just want three points, it doesn't matter how they come.

"It sounds cliched but we have a group like that here and it really is all about putting the team before yourself. By hook or by crook, we want to get three points and get back into that top three.”