Cobblers respond to Mark Hughes' pre-match comments with one of their best performances under Jon Brady

Cobblers have not been short on memorable away days since Jon Brady’s appointment as manager 21 months ago but Saturday’s magnificent performance and richly deserved 3-1 victory at promotion rivals Bradford City just about tops the lot.

Whilst the hosts may have shaded a tight and cagey opening quarter, once Mitch Pinnock pounced on a defensive error to hand Town the lead after 29 minutes, and then Shaun McWilliams finished off a slick move 90 seconds later, the three points were always destined to head back to Sixfields.

This performance had all the hallmarks of Cobblers at their best under Brady: organised and disciplined out of possession with the intensity and energy to press Bradford into mistakes and then the quality to cause all kinds of problems on the counter-attack.

The opening goal typified that. It was obviously a poor mistake but Town squeezed up the pitch, pressed aggressively and had players in the right positions to take advantage when Richie Smallwood’s erratic pass fell to Pinnock.

“Mitch had the composure to finish it but it was a team effort to suffocate them in that moment,” explained Brady. "The way we do it, we force those errors and there's certain ways we do it. I'm not going to give anything away but I don't think anyone presses like we do.”

City manager Mark Hughes said before the match that he thought and hoped Cobblers would ‘back their ability’ and not set up defensively, like others have done previously at Valley Parade this season. That, though, is not Northampton’s way under Brady.

They may not always dominate possession, and they may spend a lot of time without the ball, but invariably they take the proactive approach to push high and press, which prevents opposition teams from playing through the thirds and sustaining pressure.

On Saturday, Cobblers executed their game plan to perfection. The back four did not cough up a single clear chance from open play while Jack Sowerby controlled things at the base of midfield and his discipline allowed the outstanding Shaun McWilliams and the tenacious Ben Fox to push on and join attacks.

Mitch Pinnock and Louis Appéré were excellent both flanks whilst young Kieron Bowie was magnificent through the middle. His strength, power and relentless running caused chaos for Bradford’s defence. On another day, with more clinical finishing, Cobblers could have scored six or seven.

"Like Mark asked, we didn't want to sit back,” Brady added. “We took the game to them and that's how we got the result.

"I saw the comments but I'm not getting involved in it. I have huge respect for him as a manager and he knows the way we play and everyone saw that in the game.

"It didn't spur us on because we played the way we want to play and we have achieved what we wanted to achieve. We wanted to come to Bradford and win and we wanted to step on and not sit back and we did that.

"We have achieved our goals and we know what we can do but now we have to keep working, keep the group fit and strong and keep improving.”