Kelvin Thomas hails 'huge moment' after Cobblers open 'first ever' proper training base

Cobblers chairman Kelvin Thomas says the opening of a brand new training centre at Moulton College is a ‘huge moment’ for the club.

The centre opens this week and it’s the first time that Northampton will have a full-time, dedicated training facility where the first-team squad can base themselves.

“We have come a long way with the training facilities in the last few years,” said Thomas. “Seeing the first-team move in to their new building this week will be a huge moment for the club.

“The training environment is good. The pitches are good, the atmosphere is excellent and this will just enhance all of that and it is a proud moment for us. This is the club’s first ever real training base.

“We remember what it was like when we took over and we are more than happy to invest in this infrastructure. The likes of Brighton and Fulham would not be sending Marc Leonard and Kieron Bowie back here if they didn’t approve of the facilities and infrastructure we have here.

"It is a very good set up we have at Moulton College and we really enjoy the partnership we have with them. We also have to say a big thank you to Moulton Magpies as the use of their facility has been very helpful to the club.

“We should also thank James (Whiting) and the team at the club for the hard work to get us to this point and of course Associate Director Martin Church and all the local companies who have helped in turning this building into the club training facility, which include Church & Newman, dbfb, Lee Warren Electrical, Lee Ives Electrical, Greenbay and Dove Decorating."

Ahead of the opening of the training centre, the club have moved to say thank you to a number of local partners.

"To get this building in place has been a real team effort from so many local organisations and we really do owe a big thank you to a number of them," said chief executive James Whiting.

"We would like to say a big thank you to Moulton Magpies for their support and the use of their facilities as somewhere for the players to meet and eat breakfast and lunch before and after training.

"They are local to Moulton College so using their facilities has been a huge help while our own building was being prepared. We have strong links with a number of local football clubs, including Moulton Magpies, and we are all very grateful for their support.

"Thank you too to local builders, Church & Newman, and of course our Associate Director Martin Church, for their work helping to make the new building ready. Thank you too to another local company, T3 Signs, for their work with the signage for the new building.

"Lee Warren Electrical have done a fantastic job, helping to get the building ready for use, as has Lee Ives Electrical Thanks are due too to Dove Decorating for helping with the decorating of the new facilities, to dbfb for making sure we are all connected while Paul Knowles and his team at Greenbay do a consistently excellent job with the pitches.

"We will continue to work with local companies and partners moving forward as the first team squad settle in to their new building. These are exciting times for the club and this is a big step forward in terms of our facilities and infrastructure and we are very proud to have achieved this working with our partners who are all local companies."