13 February 2021

Northampton caretaker boss Jon Brady looks at positives despite Burton defeat

13 February 2021

Northampton caretaker manager Jon Brady insisted there were positives to take from his first game in charge despite suffering a 2-0 defeat to bottom-of-the-table Burton.

Brady replaced Keith Curle on an interim basis this week but Northampton’s struggles continued as their winless run extended to seven league games.

The home side were the better team for much of the contest but went behind when Jonathan Mitchell picked up Cian Bolger’s back pass and Michael Bostwick fired home 13 minutes from time.

Ryan Edwards’ fine solo goal in stoppage time secured victory for Burton and earned them a third win in four games.

“I think it was clear for all to see that for the first 20 or 25 minutes, we were right in the ascendancy and on the front foot,” said Brady.

“We score a goal that was very slightly offside and then we hit the bar through Ryan Watson. It’s fine margins and I think when you haven’t scored in so long it’s in the back of their minds and they’re aware of it.

“The players are down on themselves but you saw the effort and the energy they gave today – it was exceptional in my opinion.”

Brady was unhappy with the referee’s decision to award a back pass against Bolger.

He added: “I think the decision for the pass back was unfortunate because it comes off the top of Cian’s shin and Mitch had enough time to kick it away. It’s extremely harsh.

“When you’re down there, you sometimes don’t get these decisions but we can’t moan about it because we need to turn things around.

“We were 1-0 down and we tried to chase the game so we haven’t defended the second goal quite right but I’d rather die trying than not have a go.”

Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink has overseen a vast improvement since taking charge of Burton, who are now just two points from safety.

“It was a fantastic, fighting win and a big three points for us away from home,” said Hasselbaink.

“We’ve got back-to-back wins now and that’s great for boosting confidence in the changing room, especially as we had to really fight for this win here today.

“We showed a lot of character and I’m pleased to get the win, but we can’t get carried away – there’s still such a long way to go.”

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