Northampton Town interim manager Colin Calderwood has given a frank assessment of his squad, as they battle against relegation from League One.
Calderwood was given the Cobblers job on a temporary basis after Kevin Nolan was sacked earlier in March.
How Has It Come To This?
Nolan was dismissed after a run of just one win in 16 matches, seeing the club fall from mid-table into the bottom four places. Unfortunately for Northampton, Calderwood has been unable to breathe new life into his side, losing all three of his matches in charge. Twenty years ago, he led the club to promotion from League Two with an excellent defence.
Shipping four at Mansfield Town on Saturday was the second time in a month they had conceded that figure, completely at odds with his side from two decades ago. It’s therefore understandable that Calderwood gave such a blunt statement about his side’s mentality in recent weeks.
“There’s lots of fear in the players at the minute because they can’t imagine themselves having a good game. It’s psychological.
“We’re going to have to grind, and it will be a grind, and that has to come from within so it’s an internal thing that we have to do as individuals and as a group, but you have to compete and you have to show you are much, much better than what we showed on Saturday.
“We’re very flat right now and we’re broken but we have to try and put the pieces back together.”
Club In Crisis
The numbers, no matter which way you look at them, make for grim reading for Cobblers supporters. It’s now four losses in a row, seven defeats in eight matches, with Northampton’s 11 goals in 2026 the lowest return for any League One team. Netting just 15 times from open play, they have been heavily reliant on set-pieces this season. The Cobblers have the highest percentage of goals from that source by some distance, with over 50%, the only team in that bracket in the division.
A lack of solid recruitment in January has ultimately proved to be the Cobblers’ downfall, and their relegation to League Two feels a near certainty. At this stage, it is difficult to imagine them finishing above Port Vale. And getting to the magic 50 points would require five victories from seven games, a figure that seems incredibly unrealistic.
Their next four fixtures are, on paper at least, far tougher than any of their relegation rivals. Further fixtures against Bradford City, Cardiff City and Plymouth Argyle, all sides fighting at the top of the table, look incredibly difficult. That’s not to mention hosting rejuvenated sides Wigan Athletic and Doncaster Rovers in the next month. Staying up at this stage would require a miracle for Calderwood and his side.
