Curle reveals the key message to his players before impressive Grimsby victory - verdict, reaction and highlights

It was both the importance of the victory and the emphatic manner in which it was achieved that deserved such high acclaim because the Cobblers did not just beat Grimsby, they won convincingly so and played good football in the process.

The circumstances - namely the conditions, the form of the opposition and their own troubles - also added to the impressive nature of this victory and it arrived at a time when Northampton's play-off place was looking increasingly vulnerable.

Their season was not so much bordering on a crisis but neither can five defeats in six games be considered a blip. With rival teams fast making ground, they couldn't afford for that run to continue for much longer.

So this victory was a timely one and once again a fast start made a big difference, something that is becoming a theme. After scoring inside 180 seconds against both Exeter and Chelteham, on this occasion Cobblers needed just eight minutes to break the deadlock.

But unlike at Whaddon Road in midweek, they took full advantage of an early goal. Charlie Goode's thumping finish came at the end of a sustained spell of pressure and for the next 20 minutes, Town went from strength-to-strength.

There's been much discussion about their style of play this season but in recent away matches the Cobblers have been fun to watch. That was certainly the case in the first-half against Walsall and at times against Cheltenham.

And the first 45 minutes Blundell Park was among one of the most entertaining halves of the season. Whilst some of that owed to Grimsby's attacking approach, plenty of credit also belongs to Keith Curle who named a bold line-up.

Mark Marshall, Nicky Adams, Sam Hoskins, Vadaine Oliver and Callum Morton all started and in turn Cobblers looked a real force whenever they attacked on Saturday, particularly Hoskins and Morton who combined nicely throughout but particularly for the latter's precise low finish on 26 minutes.

The key period of the game came in the final 10 minutes of the first-half when Grimsby rattled their visitors with a long spell of pressure but three chances went begging, one of which brought a fine save from Steve Arnold, in for the dropped David Cornell.

Once they survived their barrage, it became a question of whether or not the Cobblers could defend a 2-0 lead.

They responded with an impressively mature and astute second 45 minutes, managing the game well while still creating chances, and when Morton poked in his second nine minutes from time - reward for his and the team's relentless pressing all afternoon - a much-needed away victory was complete.

The points opened up a little bit of breathing space in the play-offs and the top three, currently six points clear, is also not totally out of reach.

Afterwards, Curle revealed he delivered a key message for his players shortly before kick-off at Blundell Park.

"I'll give a bit of an insight into what we said to the players before the game," he said. " I demanded and challenged them to see their personality today, both in and out of possession.

"When out of possession, that means we need to work hard, we need to be aggressive and we need to have that understanding and discipline to know where we want the ball to go and the desire to go and get back.

"And then we get the ball, we need that personality to be brave enough to keep it and show an understanding of when to play, where to play and who we want to get on the ball.

"Today was a game of personality and we showed our personality."