Peter Swan for the Northampton job!

Last updated : 02 October 2003 By John Beresford

Northampton were one of the few teams to invest in players over the summer. It’s not that these players were poor quality, but I’d heard from a few sources that that the previous manager was caught between two stools – he didn’t know whether to develop a system around his players or to play a system and try and mould the players around it. I even heard one rival third division coach describe Wilkinson’s purchases as ‘fantasy football’ – a decent player would become available and he’d snap him up without any great thought as to where and how he’d fit in.

I've known Swany for years, he’s played at all levels of the game and his experience of the Nationwide League is great. He’s recently been coaching at the club, and as a result he’ll have a decent grasp of the players he’d be working with. I'm absolutely certain that he’d be more than capable of turning around Northampton’s season. As well as his football experience, he's also one of the most popular people you'll meet. His man-management is excellent and if there's any certainty in life, his appointent would guarantee Northampton the best set of highly motivated players in the league. If any player's attitude is wrong, he'll sort them out or ship them on!

I’d usually make some soft throw away comment such as ‘they’d be Cobbler’s’ to appoint anyone else, but this is too serious, I’d really like him to get the job. So I’ll just say "Go on Northampton, Swany’s your man".