Harrogate's Weaver heaps praise on Brady and backs Cobblers to stay in the promotion hunt

'You can see that whatever shape they play, they've been organised and hard to beat.'
Simon Weaver.Simon Weaver.
Simon Weaver.

Harrogate Town manager Simon Weaver expects Northampton to stay the course and remain strong contenders for promotion until the end of the season ahead of this weekend's encounter at Wetherby Road.

In-form Northampton head to North Yorkshire hoping to stay second and make it three wins in a row against promotion rivals, with Harrogate themselves only a point off the play-offs.

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"They can really mix up their game," said Weaver. "It would be wrong to just say they're a direct team as I think they can mix it up and I think you have to at this level.

"They've got good players with good experience and a lot of games under their belts. Some of them playing in the Scottish Premier, League One. We've looked into them and they can play different formations.

"They ended up three at the back the other night and got the ball down the flanks to the wing backs and got some good deliveries into the box. Whether we expect that or 4-3-2-1 or the diamond system, we have to be ready."

Weaver and Jon Brady have crossed paths several times before when the Cobblers boss was in charge of Brackley Town in the National League North.

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Asked if he expects Northampton to stay at the top end of the table, Weaver added: "Yeah I think they will be.

"I think John Brady has done a great job and we've had some battles before when he was at Brackley a few years ago. He's a really astute guy, a manager and football person, and he can organise his team. You can see that whatever shape they play, they've been organised and hard to beat.

"They've conceded far fewer goals than most teams at our level but they also have the threats going forward.

"I anticipate it'll be a little bit hectic for the first 20 minutes because both teams will battle hard, but then we've got to take the chances when they arise and get the ball down and play whenever we can."