'Way bigger achievement than winning promotion' - 'Happy' Jon Brady 'humbled' by support from Cobblers fans

Manager Jon Brady has been reflecting on Cobblers’ season this week, describing their success in League One as a ‘way bigger achievement’ than winning promotion, ahead of Saturday’s final game against Barnsley.

Town finished third in League Two 12 months ago and were widely anticipated to struggle in the third tier, however they have sat comfortably in mid-table for the majority of the campaign, with survival assured long before the final game.

Cobblers are 14th ahead of tomorrow’s finale at Oakwell but could finish anywhere between 12th and 15th as they aim to bounce back from successive defeats.

"We've still won three of our last six games and that's a good points return at this level,” said Brady. “You can be fleeting about a moment here or there but it's about the whole season and that's what we're looking at and what we've achieved and it’s been a brilliant season.

"We've gone above our target and we've achieved more than what we wanted to. Yes, we are greedy and yes, we are ambitious and we are disappointed to lose the last two but, overall, I'm really happy with what we've achieved here. I feel it's a way bigger achievement than winning promotion last season, absolutely.”

This season is the first in five years where Cobblers have gone into the final few weeks without anything on the line.

"We've obviously had incredible jeopardy going into the last game in the previous two seasons,” Brady added. “One left a lot of scares and the other made it all worthwhile but the last month has felt very weird in terms of not having that jeopardy as much.

"That's not like us at Northampton but to be safe to early was testament to the group. We still want to compete and perform and win games of football and we've won three of our last six.

"We will go up to Barnsley on Saturday and do our best to put in a fantastic performance. We know we have over 1,000 travelling up there, which is truly humbling, and we appreciate it so much. It could be a full house so it'll be a great atmosphere and we're looking forward to it.