# 2017–18 Northampton Town F.C. season

The 2017–18 season was Northampton Town's 121st season in their history and the second successive season in League One. Alongside competing in League One, the club also participated in the FA Cup, EFL Cup and EFL Trophy.

## Players

    As of match played 6 May 2018.
| No. | Name | Position | Place of Birth | Date of Birth (Age) | Apps | Goals | Previous club | Date signed | Fee |
| Goalkeepers |||||||||||
| 1 | David Cornell | GK | Waunarlwydd | (1991-03-28)28 March 1991 (aged 27) | 22 | 0 | Oldham Athletic | 21 June 2016 | Free |
| 13 | Richard O'Donnell | GK | Sheffield | (1988-09-12)12 September 1988 (aged 29) | 19 | 0 | Rotherham United | 9 January 2018 | Add-ons |
| 25 | James Goff | GK | Northampton | (1999-03-28)28 March 1999 (aged 19) | 0 | 0 | Academy | 30 April 2017 | N/A |
| Defenders |||||||||||
| 2 | Brendan Moloney | RB | Beaufort | (1989-01-18)18 January 1989 (aged 29) | 115 | 2 | Yeovil Town | 2 January 2015 | Free |
| 3 | David Buchanan (c) | LB | Rochdale (ENG) | (1986-05-06)6 May 1986 (aged 32) | 143 | 1 | Preston North End | 28 May 2015 | Free |
| 5 | Leon Barnett | CB | Stevenage | (1985-11-30)30 November 1985 (aged 32) | 18 | 1 | Bury | 31 May 2017 | Free |
| 6 | Ash Taylor | CB | Bromborough (ENG) | (1990-09-02)2 September 1990 (aged 27) | 52 | 7 | Aberdeen | 5 July 2017 | Free |
| 16 | Aaron Pierre | CB | Southall (ENG) | (1993-02-17)17 February 1993 (aged 25) | 23 | 0 | Wycombe Wanderers | 21 July 2017 | Free |
| 18 | Aaron Phillips | RB | Warwick | (1993-11-20)20 November 1993 (aged 24) | 27 | 1 | Coventry City | 3 June 2016 | Free |
| 24 | Shay Facey | RB | Stockport | (1995-01-07)7 January 1995 (aged 23) | 15 | 1 | Manchester City | 5 January 2018 | Undisclosed |
| 26 | Regan Poole | CB | Cardiff | (1998-06-18)18 June 1998 (aged 19) | 24 | 0 | Manchester United | 7 July 2017 | Loan |
| 27 | Raheem Hanley | LB | Blackburn | (1994-03-24)24 March 1994 (aged 24) | 9 | 0 | Swansea City | 14 June 2016 | Free |
| 37 | Jordan Turnbull | CB | Trowbridge | (1994-10-30)30 October 1994 (aged 23) | 14 | 0 | Coventry City | 11 January 2018 | Add-ons |
| 39 | Joe Bunney | LB | Gorton | (1993-09-26)26 September 1993 (aged 24) | 12 | 0 | Rochdale | 16 January 2018 | Undisclosed |
| Midfielders |||||||||||
| 4 | Yaser Kasim | CM | Karrada | (1991-05-10)10 May 1991 (aged 26) | 10 | 0 | Swindon Town | 4 July 2017 | Free |
| 8 | Sam Foley | CM | St Albans (ENG) | (1986-10-17)17 October 1986 (aged 31) | 27 | 3 | Port Vale | 22 May 2017 | Free |
| 11 | Daniel Powell | W | Luton | (1991-03-12)12 March 1991 (aged 27) | 32 | 2 | Milton Keynes Dons | 5 May 2017 | Free |
| 14 | Sam Hoskins | AM | Dorchester | (1993-02-04)4 February 1993 (aged 25) | 102 | 13 | Yeovil Town | 1 August 2015 | Free |
| 17 | Shaun McWilliams | CM | Northampton | (1998-08-14)14 August 1998 (aged 19) | 27 | 0 | Academy | 30 April 2016 | N/A |
| 21 | John-Joe O'Toole | CM | Harrow (ENG) | (1988-09-30)30 September 1988 (aged 29) | 160 | 32 | Bristol Rovers | 30 June 2014 | Free |
| 22 | Matt Crooks | CM | Leeds | (1994-01-20)20 January 1994 (aged 24) | 34 | 4 | Rangers | 18 July 2017 | £100,000 |
| 29 | Matt Grimes | CM | Exeter | (1995-06-15)15 June 1995 (aged 22) | 47 | 4 | Swansea City | 16 August 2017 | Loan |
| 36 | Jack Bridge | AM | Southend | (1995-09-21)21 September 1995 (aged 22) | 4 | 0 | Southend United | 5 January 2018 | Free |
| Forwards |||||||||||
| 10 | Kevin van Veen | CF | Eindhoven | (1991-06-01)1 June 1991 (aged 26) | 10 | 0 | Scunthorpe United | 30 January 2018 | Undisclosed |
| 12 | Leon Lobjoit | CF | Hatfield | (1995-01-04)4 January 1995 (aged 23) | 1 | 0 | Buckingham Town | 30 March 2017 | N/A |
| 19 | Chris Long | CF | Huyton | (1995-02-25)25 February 1995 (aged 23) | 42 | 9 | Burnley | 28 July 2017 | Loan |
| 42 | Kevin Luckassen | CF | Eindhoven | (1993-07-27)27 July 1993 (aged 24) | 4 | 1 | SKN St. Pölten | 9 March 2018 | Free |

## Pre-season

As of 26 June 2017, Northampton Town have announced six pre-season friendlies, against Derby County, Frome Town, Northampton Sileby Rangers, Kettering Town, Birmingham City 'Dev' and Newport County.

## Competitions
### Sky Bet EFL League One
#### League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
| 20 | Rochdale | 46 | 11 | 18 | 17 | 49 | 57 | −8 | 51 | |
| 21 | Oldham Athletic (R) | 46 | 11 | 17 | 18 | 58 | 75 | −17 | 50 | Relegation to EFL League Two |
| 22 | Northampton Town (R) | 46 | 12 | 11 | 23 | 43 | 77 | −34 | 47 | Relegation to EFL League Two |
| 23 | Milton Keynes Dons (R) | 46 | 11 | 12 | 23 | 43 | 69 | −26 | 45 | Relegation to EFL League Two |
| 24 | Bury (R) | 46 | 8 | 12 | 26 | 41 | 71 | −30 | 36 | Relegation to EFL League Two |

#### League position by match

| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 43 | 44 | 45 | 46 |
| Ground | A | H | A | H | H | H | A | A | H | A | A | H | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | A | H | A | H |
| Result | L | L | L | L | W | W | D | L | L | D | L | L | L | D | W | W | W | L | L | D | L | W | D | L | L | L | W | W | W | D | L | W | L | D | D | D | L | D | L | L | L | L | W | W | L | D |
| Position | 20 | 21 | 23 | 24 | 22 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 23 | 23 | 22 | 21 | 19 | 21 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 20 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 21 | 18 | 20 | 20 | 18 | 20 | 19 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 23 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 |

#### Matches

Win  Draw  Loss
On 21 June 2017, the league fixtures were announced.

### FA Cup

On 16 October 2017, the first round draw was made with Northampton Town drawn at home against Scunthorpe United. A 0–0 draw meant a replay had to be played at Glanford Park.

### Carabao Cup

On 16 June 2017, the first round draw was made with Northampton Town drawn away against QPR.

### Checkatrade Trophy

On 12 July 2017, the group stage draw was made with Northampton Town drawn in a group with Southampton U23s, Cambridge United and Peterborough United. After finished as runners-up in the group stages, Northampton were drawn away to Portsmouth in the second round.
| Pos | Lge | Teamvte | Pld | W | PW | PL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | L1 | Peterborough United (Q) | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | +4 | 7 | Round 2 |
| 2 | L1 | Northampton Town (Q) | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 6 | Round 2 |
| 3 | ACA | Southampton U21 (E) | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 5 | −1 | 4 | |
| 4 | L2 | Cambridge United (E) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | −3 | 1 | |

### Appearances, goals and cards

| No. | Pos | Player | League One | League One | League One | FA Cup | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup | League Cup | League Trophy | League Trophy | League Trophy | Total | Total | Total | Discipline | Discipline |
| No. | Pos | Player | Starts | Sub | Goals | Starts | Sub | Goals | Starts | Sub | Goals | Starts | Sub | Goals | Starts | Sub | Goals | | |
| 1 | GK | David Cornell | 6 | – | – | 2 | – | – | 1 | – | – | 3 | – | – | 12 | – | – | – | – |
| 2 | RB | Brendan Moloney | 31 | 3 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 4 | – | – | 38 | 3 | – | 4 | – |
| 3 | LB | David Buchanan | 32 | – | 1 | 1 | – | – | 1 | – | – | 2 | – | – | 36 | – | 1 | 3 | – |
| 4 | CM | Yaser Kasim | 4 | 2 | – | 1 | – | – | 1 | – | – | 2 | – | – | 8 | 2 | – | – | – |
| 5 | CB | Leon Barnett | 13 | 2 | 1 | – | – | – | 1 | – | – | 2 | – | – | 15 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 6 | CB | Ash Taylor | 45 | – | 6 | 2 | – | – | 1 | – | – | 4 | – | 1 | 52 | – | 7 | 2 | 1 |
| 8 | CM | Sam Foley | 15 | 8 | 2 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | 2 | 1 | 1 | 18 | 9 | 3 | 3 | – |
| 10 | ST | Kevin van Veen | 6 | 4 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 6 | 4 | – | 2 | – |
| 11 | W | Daniel Powell | 21 | 8 | 2 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | 2 | – | – | 24 | 8 | 2 | 3 | – |
| 13 | GK | Richard O'Donnell | 19 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 19 | – | – | 2 | – |
| 14 | AM | Sam Hoskins | 18 | 9 | 2 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | – | – | 20 | 9 | 2 | 6 | – |
| 16 | CB | Aaron Pierre | 19 | – | – | 2 | – | – | 1 | – | – | 1 | – | – | 23 | – | – | 3 | – |
| 17 | CM | Shaun McWilliams | 15 | 4 | – | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | – | – | 17 | 4 | – | 6 | – |
| 18 | RB | Aaron Phillips | 2 | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | 3 | – | – | – | – |
| 19 | ST | Chris Long | 30 | 7 | 9 | 1 | – | – | 1 | – | – | 2 | 1 | – | 34 | 8 | 9 | 4 | – |
| 21 | CM | John-Joe O'Toole | 25 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 26 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 1 |
| 22 | CM | Matt Crooks | 29 | 1 | 4 | 1 | – | – | 1 | – | – | 2 | – | – | 33 | 1 | 4 | 10 | 3 |
| 24 | RB | Shay Facey | 13 | 2 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 13 | 2 | 1 | 2 | – |
| 25 | GK | James Goff | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 26 | CB | Regan Poole | 18 | 4 | – | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | – | – | 20 | 4 | – | 2 | – |
| 29 | CM | Matt Grimes | 43 | 1 | 4 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | 2 | – | 44 | 3 | 4 | 13 | – |
| 36 | AM | Jack Bridge | 1 | 3 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | 3 | – | – | – |
| 37 | CB | Jordan Turnbull | 14 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 14 | – | – | 2 | – |
| 39 | LB | Joe Bunney | 11 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 11 | 1 | – | 1 | – |
| 40 | LM | Morgan Roberts | – | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | – | – | – |
| 42 | ST | Kevin Luckassen | 1 | 3 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | – |
| Players out on loan: ||||||||||||||||||||
| 7 | ST | Billy Waters | 9 | 8 | – | – | 2 | – | 1 | – | – | 2 | 1 | – | 12 | 11 | – | 3 | – |
| 12 | ST | Leon Lobjoit | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | – | – | – |
| 15 | AM | Dean Bowditch | 3 | 8 | – | 2 | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | 2 | – | 5 | 11 | – | 1 | – |
| 23 | ST | Joe Iaciofano | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | – | – | 1 | – | – | – |
| 27 | LB | Raheem Hanley | 3 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | – | – | 4 | 1 | – | – | – |
| 30 | GK | Luke Coddington | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | – | – | 2 | – | – | – | – |
| Players no longer at the club: ||||||||||||||||||||
| 9 | ST | Marc Richards | 7 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 1 | – | – | 1 | – | 3 | – | – | 11 | 14 | 1 | – | – |
| 9 | ST | Boris Mathis | 2 | 3 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 2 | 3 | – | – | – |
| 10 | ST | Alex Revell | 10 | 5 | 2 | – | – | – | 1 | – | – | 1 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 6 | 3 | – | – |
| 13 | GK | Matt Ingram | 20 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 20 | – | – | – | – |
| 20 | LB | George Smith | 5 | 1 | – | 1 | – | – | – | 1 | – | 2 | – | – | 8 | 2 | – | – | – |
| 24 | CB | Ryan McGivern | – | 1 | – | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | – | – | 2 | 1 | – | – | – |
| 28 | RW | Hildeberto Pereira | 4 | 8 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 4 | 8 | – | 3 | 1 |
| 31 | CM | Matt Taylor | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | – | – | – | – |
| 37 | AM | Lewis McGugan | 7 | 2 | – | 1 | 1 | – | – | – | – | 2 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 3 | – |
| 45 | W | Gboly Ariyibi | 3 | 9 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 3 | 9 | – | – | – |

## Awards
### Club awards

At the end of the season, Northampton's annual award ceremony, including categories voted for by the players and backroom staff, the supporters, will see the players recognised for their achievements for the club throughout the 2017–18 season.
| Player of the Year Award | Ash Taylor |
| Players' Player of the Year Award | Ash Taylor |
| Academy Player of the Year Award | Morgan Roberts |
| Goal of the Season Award | Daniel Powell (vs. Gillingham) |

## Transfers
### Transfers in

| Date from | Position | Name | From | Fee |
| 1 July 2017 | CB | Leon Barnett | Bury | Free |
| 1 July 2017 | LW | Dean Bowditch | Milton Keynes Dons | Free |
| 1 July 2017 | CM | Sam Foley | Port Vale | Free |
| 1 July 2017 | CF | Leon Lobjoit | Buckingham Town | Free |
| 1 July 2017 | RW | Daniel Powell | Milton Keynes Dons | Free |
| 1 July 2017 | LB | George Smith | Gateshead | Undisclosed |
| 1 July 2017 | CF | Billy Waters | Cheltenham Town | Undisclosed |
| 4 July 2017 | MF | Yaser Kasim | Swindon Town | Free |
| 5 July 2017 | CB | Ash Taylor | Aberdeen | Free |
| 18 July 2017 | DM | Matt Crooks | Rangers | Undisclosed |
| 21 July 2017 | CB | Aaron Pierre | Wycombe Wanderers | Free |
| 17 August 2017 | GK | Luke Coddington | Huddersfield Town | Free |
| 2 October 2017 | CM | Lewis McGugan | Sheffield Wednesday | Free |
| 3 November 2017 | LB | Ryan McGivern | Shrewsbury Town | Free |

### Transfers out

| Date from | Position | Name | To | Fee |
| 1 July 2017 | RM | Paul Anderson | Mansfield Town | Released |
| 1 July 2017 | CM | Harry Beautyman | Stevenage | Free |
| 1 July 2017 | CB | Zander Diamond | Mansfield Town | Released |
| 1 July 2017 | RB | Neal Eardley | Lincoln City | Released |
| 1 July 2017 | CB | Rod McDonald | Coventry City | Undisclosed |
| 1 July 2017 | GK | Adam Smith | Bristol Rovers | Released |
| 1 July 2017 | RW | Emmanuel Sonupe | Free agent | Released |
| 1 July 2017 | CB | Gabriel Zakuani | Gillingham | Released |
| 8 July 2017 | CM | Jak McCourt | Chesterfield | Mutual consent |
| 22 August 2017 | LM | Matthew Taylor | Swindon Town | Free |
* ↑ Paul Anderson joined Mansfield Town following his release.
* ↑ Zander Diamond joined Mansfield Town following his release.
* ↑ Neal Eardley joined Lincoln City following his release.
* ↑ Adam Smith joined Bristol Rovers following his release.
* ↑ Gabriel Zakuani joined Gillingham following his release.
* ↑ Jak McCourt joined Chesterfield following his departure.

### Loans in

| Start date | Position | Name | From | End date |
| 7 July 2017 | CB | Regan Poole | Manchester United | 30 June 2018 |
| 28 July 2017 | CF | Chris Long | Burnley | 30 June 2018 |
| 18 August 2017 | CM | Matt Grimes | Swansea City | 30 June 2018 |
| 31 August 2017 | GK | Matt Ingram | Queens Park Rangers | 30 June 2018 |

### Loans out

| Start date | Position | Name | To | End date |
| 25 August 2017 | GK | James Goff | St Ives Town | 22 September 2017 |
| 16 September 2017 | GK | Luke Coddington | Wrexham | 14 October 2017 |
| 25 September 2017 | CF | Leon Lobjoit | Corby Town | 24 October 2017 |
| 26 September 2017 | FW | Joe Iaciofano | Chesham United | 26 November 2017 |
| 27 October 2017 | CF | Leon Lobjoit | Nuneaton Town | 26 November 2017 |
| 13 December 2017 | CF | Leon Lobjoit | Corby Town | January 2018 |
* ↑ On 27 October, Joe Iaciofano extended his loan with Chesham United by a further month.