'Shocked' Sampson 'didn't see it coming at all' after taking the reins from Brady

Brady caught everyone by surprise, including people within the club, when he handed in his resignation on Wednesday, a day after Town were beaten 2-0 by Stevenage and dropped into the League One relegation zone as a result.

As Brady’s number two, Sampson was asked by chairman Kelvin Thomas if he would take the job on an interim basis. He immediately accepted and will be in charge for Monday’s derby against Peterborough United, supported by first-team coach Marc Richards.

The former Cobblers player and manager was close with Brady having worked alongside him for over a year but he had no inkling of what was about to happen.

"We were all shocked,” admitted Sampson. “We didn’t see it coming so it was a shock when I got the news on Wednesday.

"Everybody is disappointed and we didn't expect it. We all thought Jon would be here for longer but for whatever reason he’s made his decision and we respect that and now we have to crack on.

"Football’s like this sometimes. Whether it’s a resignation or a termination of contract, we’ve all seen it before. We have an experienced group here who have been through it before so we’ll move on quickly.”

Asked if it came completely out of the blue, Sampson replied: “Absolutely. I didn’t see it coming at all. We’ve had some bad results and a lot of injuries and the stress builds up. I’ve been there myself so I know what it’s all about and obviously there was a tipping point for Jon.

"He’ll have his reasons but I can’t explain what they were because I wasn’t privy to any conversations.”