Cobblers return to Reading 'a different side' to Nolan's 'eye-opening' first game in charge
Kevin Nolan says he will be taking a ‘very different side’ back to Reading on Tuesday, scene of his first game as Northampton boss.
Nolan took charge two days before Christmas last year and discovered the scale of his task when overseeing an ‘eye-opening’ 4-1 defeat the Madejski Stadium on Boxing Day.
Nonetheless, he guided Cobblers to League One survival with games to spare before completely overhauling the squad in the summer, and he returns to Berkshire with his side sitting 11th in the table.
He said: "I hope it's not like the last time we played there! I'm looking forward to it and we're a different side now to the one that we took there on Boxing Day in my first game in charge. It was an eye-opener for me on that day after a manic 48 hours but a lot has changed since then.
"I was obviously disappointed with the outcome and they were worthy winners on the day but I hope the Reading fans are going to see a very different Northampton side to what they saw last time.
"Can we go and match the performance against Doncaster and win on a Tuesday after a Saturday? It's another challenge and if we can execute our game plan again, we’ll give ourselves every chance.
"They are a good side. We said that about Rotherham and sometimes the table does not tell you the whole truth. Reading played very well against Cardiff on Saturday and they were unlucky to come away with a loss.
"There are no easy games in this league and we can’t rest on our laurels because we need to keep putting points on the board. If we’re the best version of ourselves, it’ll give us a great chance to get three points.”
Nolan’s also targeting a rare Tuesday win, adding: “Don’t worry, I’m already on it because it’s no secret that we want to start winning midweek games more than we have. I feel we have a squad that’s robust enough to play three games in a week.
"It’s about us executing now and that’s what I’m expecting and demanding of the lads on Tuesday. I’m looking forward to seeing Noel (Hunt) as well – I just hope he’s a bit more upset than when I last saw him!”