The standout stat that has propelled Cobblers to back-to-back wins - and which puts them among the best in League One
For all the focus on Northampton’s lack of goals and firepower in recent weeks, the foundation of their improved form has come at the other end of the pitch.
Cobblers started the campaign with just one point and one goal from their first four matches, but then came back-to-back wins against Exeter City and Leyton Orient, both of which were built on very solid defensive performances.
Strong foundations at the back were a theme under Kevin Nolan in the second half of last season and that has so far continued into the new campaign. Just two teams have a lower xG against than Northampton’s 5.4 (same as Stevenage) this season – Cardiff and Bolton – while only Bolton, Luton and Stevenage have conceded fewer shots.
xG is effectively a measure of the quality of chances a team creates. The higher your xG, the more chances and the better chances you have. And the same goes the other way, the lower your xG against, the fewer chances you are giving up to opposition teams.
Cobblers have also not conceded a single ‘big chance’ in any of their last three games, giving up just 0.17xG (Lincoln), 0.15 xG (Exeter) and 0.33xG (Orient) in the process. What’s more, Town rank top of League One for interceptions per game with 8.5.
So although their attacking play can and needs to keep improving, if they maintain those sort of defensive numbers, the chances of being sucked into a relegation battle will significantly reduce.
"Our shape and work out of possession is something we work on tirelessly,” explained Nolan. “We have our way in terms of how we want to press and get after teams and I think you can see that from the last few games.
"We want to be on the front foot but there will also be times when we defend in a mid-block and then a low-block and the players are doing it to a tee at the minute. I'm delighted because they are taking on lots of information and I feel we are getting better week on week. There were also times where we had to suffer (against Orient) but I thought we looked comfortable and we were patient.
"We haven’t given up many chances and we aren’t giving teams too many opportunities. There was a lapse against Stevenage but then it's a great finish by the lad for Lincoln and since then we’ve kept two clean sheets.
“I’ve been 90 per cent happy with the defensive side of it and it all starts from the front with the lads at the top of the pitch, and there’s also a cohesion building at the back and I feel we look really solid and strong as a defensive unit and that needs to continue. Clean sheets are so important and we’ve kept three in six so far, which is great, but we have to keep that up.
"We can't rest on our laurels because we can still get better. We have seven points from six games but I feel we should have more and that's why I'm here – to bring a bit of realism when everyone else is getting carried away!”