Cobblers boss - 'What we’ve got to do is make sure that we don’t get caught up in all that nervousness'
Cobblers boss Aidy Boothroyd previews Saturday’s Sixfields clash against Accrington Stanley.
“Accrington are fighting for their lives and what we’ve got to do is respect their strengths and at the same time exploit their weaknesses,” he said.
“I’ve seen Accrington play quite a few times this season and they do pose a threat so what we can’t afford to do is take them lightly and we won’t.
“We were disappointed after the game at Exeter but we got what we deserved and we only had ourselves to blame. All three goals could have been avoided and all three goals we should have dealt with.
“We know that the league is very tight and we know that any team that puts a good run together can arguably have a go for those top three places.
“If the league remains as unpredictable as it has been then it is going to go right down to the wire and what we’ve got to try and do is be that consistent team that is predictable and that keeps winning and picking up points.
“From day one from when I sat down with the players we all agreed that anything other than top ten this season would be unacceptable.
“I said that I expected us to be getting into the play-offs as a minimum with the group of players that I had, obviously expectation levels have rocketed from the supporters but my expectations from this group are that we’ve got to be the best we can be.
“We had a mediocre start, a reasonable middle and we’ve really just cracked on in the last ten games but it’s the next ten games that are the most important.
“We know it’s a nervy time of the season but we’ve got to be pushing ourselves to be the best we can be.
“What we’ve got to do is make sure that we don’t get caught up in all that nervousness and more importantly that our supporters don’t either because if it’s 0-0 with 10 minutes to go on Saturday there needs to be people keeping calm and cool heads.
“As a club we have got upward momentum now and when you’ve got that you make sure that you try and keep it going.
“The pressure on a Saturday now is an awful lot different to what it was this time last year, this is what I’m used to and I like it.
“We have made progress and we want to keep getting better.
“This week has been very good and on Thursday a few of the lads went to see Alex Nicholls in London where he is having some treatment.
“I made the decision to leave Chris Hackett out last weekend, he is going to be very important for us in these last ten games and I didn’t want to risk losing him for a longer period by playing him when he wasn’t quite one hundred per cent right.
“I’ve made him a bit of a special case but he’s fit now and he’s raring to go. He has no pain whatsoever so it will be like unleashing a new player against Accrington on Saturday.”