Former Ipswich Town midfielder Paul Anderson realised a dream by playing at Wembley as Northampton got promoted on Monday - and says the Cobblers, who will be clashing with Town in League One next season, are ‘an incredible team.’
Anderson came off the bench for the last few minutes as Keith Curle’s squad blew Exeter away 4-0 in the League Two play-off final at an empty Wembley due to the coronavirus pandemic.
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And the 31-year-old, who left Town in 2015 after writing his name into club history with a goal in their Championship play-off first leg clash with Norwich, said it was an evening of mixed emotions.
He told the Melton Times: “It’s an incredible achievement and a dream of mine to play at Wembley.
“The way my career’s gone in the last couple of years I thought it was never going to happen. But I’ve achieved it and pretty much everything I’ve ever wanted out of my career now.”
He added: “It was a really weird evening. I know everyone’s spoken about football without fans being nothing. Up until last night we just got on with it.
“To do it without the fans is a shame for them and for us, for everyone involved. There’s nothing better than the fans singing and cheering, it was bittersweet really.
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“When we got back to the stadium there was a massive crowd of fans that’d driven down. That was nice as at least we could share it with some of the hardcore later on.”
Anderson, who’s played 25 times for the Cobblers this season, scoring once, also praised his team-mates for their efforts in winning promotion - next season will be the first time since 1967 that Town and Northampton have met in the league.
He said: “Getting to Wembley was a dream but, deep down, if I’d not got on that pitch there’d be something niggling away at me that I’d not actually played on that pitch.
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“I played only five or 10 minutes but no-one can take that away from me. I’ve had a big part to play in getting us there. I’m on cloud nine.
“This team is an incredible team. The changing room is a good changing room. It’s very tight knit and you’ve got good characters.”
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