(Picture: Action Images via Reuters)
Northampton Town boss Justin Edinburgh has apologised to the club's fans after he failed to applaud them following their 4-1 thrashing by Charlton on Saturday.
The Cobblers have endured a torrid start to the new campaign, having lost their first four games of the season, and are languishing joint-bottom of the division – visit FanBet for Betting Sites, and look at the latest odds for Northampton's faltering campaign.
At The Valley, Northampton struggled against Karl Robinson's side, and were comfortably beaten, with two late Jake Forster-Caskey goals sealing an emphatic victory for the Addicks.
Edinburgh was mightily disappointed with the performance from his players, but was quick to apologise to the travelling support, telling Radio Northampton: “I was disappointed after the final whistle and lost in my own thoughts.
“The crowd were excellent and I've not applauded their support, which disappoints me because that's not what I'm about.”
After an encouraging summer of signings, and Chinese firm 5USport buying a 60% stake in the club, expectations around Sixfields had been quietly growing as hopes of a successful season arose.
The dreadful start has put a dampener on those expectations, and Edinburgh has said everyone must be realistic, telling Radio Northampton: “We accept there are expectations, but I don't feel we should get carried away with what the expectations are, we aren't one of the top three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, 10 clubs in this league.
“If you look at Charlton's wage bill compared to ours, it's probably double.
“We're disappointed with the result, with what's gone on at the start of the season. We want to finish in the top half. Is that still possible? Absolutely. Three games in and we can't finish in the top half – course we can.”