When Cobblers must submit their retained list - even if they have no manager

The club usually reveal the list of who’s saying and who’s going within a week of the season finishing, but things are different this time around. With no permanent manager currently in place, and given off-field uncertainty, decisions on players’ futures may have to be pushed back.

"You're not going to get a dramatic influx of players in the next two or three weeks,” admitted interim boss Colin Calderwood after Saturday’s final game of the season against Plymouth. “It doesn't happen like that because players will sit and reflect on offers and a lot of them will be hedging their bets to see what else comes up.”

However, whilst chairman Kelvin Thomas suggested last week that the appointment of a new manager may not happen imminently, even though the season is now over, there is a date by which the club are forced to publish their retained list.

EFL rules state that clubs must tell their players by the third Saturday in May if they want to keep them beyond the end of their current contract, which expires on June 30th. This notification has to be in writing and should include the terms of any new deal being offered, although in some cases the full details can be provided slightly later. This year, the deadline falls on May 16th. Exceptions are made for clubs competing in the play-offs.

At the same time, clubs are required to submit a retained list to the league by the same deadline. This list confirms the status of all players and includes:

• Players who are out of contract this summer and have been offered a new deal
• Players who are still under contract beyond this summer (including those where the club has triggered an extension option)
• Players who are out of contract this summer and have not been offered a new deal
• Players on week-to-week agreements and whether they are being kept on
• Scholars who are still with the club
• Non-contract players who remain registered