Northampton Town manager Ian Sampson has signed a new 3 year contract to stay at Sixfields until at least June 2013.

Sampson has been in charge of the Cobblers since the start of October, and Chairman David Cardoza is delighted to give him the opportunity to continue his excellent work.

"Ian has been a breath of fresh air to the club," he said.

"Many people know that Ian is Northampton Town through and through and his commitment to the club has never been in doubt. Since he has taken over as manager he has impressed me greatly. Our performances have improved, our results have improved, he has shown great faith in the young players here and we have seen any number of players improve and progress under his leadership.

"The team spirit is great and it is clear the players are responding to him and the professional atmosphere he has generated and instilled.

"He is being ably assisted by Malcolm Crosby, and his experience is proving invaluable to us. His work both behind the scenes and on the training field should not be underestimated and the two of them make a very good partnership. We are very close to agreeing a new contract with Malcolm and that should be finalised within the next few days."

Sampson himself was just as pleased to sign the contract.

"I arrived at the club back in 1994 and although we have had our ups and downs I have enjoyed every single minute of it," he said.

"Since taking over as manager last year I have been fortunate to be able to call on the experience of Malcolm Crosby and so far things have gone well for us.

"We are battling hard to try and catch the top seven and get ourselves into the play offs this season, but whatever may happen over the last dozen or so games of the season, I have seen enough progress with the players to think that we can continue our progress beyond this season.

"I have been delighted with the reaction of the players and the supporters since taking over and the atmosphere around the club is very good at the moment. We want to continue to try and take the club forward and I am pleased that we have got this sorted out."