Northampton Town have parted company with manager Kevin Nolan after a run of seven games without a win.
Nolan, 43, was appointed by the League One outfit in December 2024 and successfully kept the Cobblers up last season.
His former side enjoyed a positive start to the campaign this time out, and following a 3-1 win over AFC Wimbledon in December, they were 10th in the league.
However, a run of one win in 15 matches saw Northampton tumble down the table, and after a 1-0 defeat by the Dons in the reverse fixture on Sunday, they are now languishing in 23rd place, three points adrift of safety.
In a statement announcing Nolan’s departure on Monday afternoon, Cobblers chairman Kelvin Thomas said: ‘We are sorry to have to take this decision, but unfortunately as we all know, football is very results based.
‘We will always be grateful to Kevin for his hard work here. He helped keep us up last season and we enjoyed a strong first half of this season, but since Christmas the sequence of performances and results have led us to believe a change is in the best interests of all concerned.
Northampton Town have parted company with Kevin Nolan after seven games without a win
‘Kevin leaves with our thanks and our best wishes and we wish him well for the future.’
Technical Director Colin Calderwood, who led Northampton to promotion from League Two in 2006 and has also managed Nottingham Forest, Hibernian and Cambridge, has been placed in temporary charge.
He will be assisted by Ian Sampson, another former Northampton boss.
Speaking after Sunday’s defeat by Wimbledon, Nolan had expressed a desire to fight on.
‘We’ve got to scrap our way out of it – that’s the only way you get out of these situations,’ he told BBC Radio Northampton.
‘We’re in a tough place at the minute and we’re not enjoying it. We’ve got to start picking up wins and picking up points very quickly.
‘The relentless schedule has been ridiculous. It has hurt us and affected us but it’s now up to us to fight our way out of it.’
Nolan continued: ‘We’ve won one in 16 and I’m not someone to shy away from that. I walk into a fight never away from it. We are in a dogfight and I am up for it.
‘I was the man [for the job] last year, and why wouldn’t I be the man now?
‘We’ve been playing well and have deserved more than we’ve got over the last few weeks. Sometimes you need a little luck – one to go in off a backside or whatever.
‘What we’ve got to do is keep the lads believing, keep repetition, get them back to where we were before we went into this period. I know it’s hard for everybody but we’re well up for the fight.’
Nolan, whose former side also lost in the EFL Trophy semi-finals to Luton last week, was hampered by star striker Ethan Wheatley being recalled by Man United in January before he was sent out on loan to fellow League One outfit Bradford City.
Northampton are 23rd in League One and technical director Colin Calderwood (right) has been placed in temporary charge
Nolan, who gained cult status during his playing career for his exploits with Bolton, Newcastle and West Ham, began his managerial career with Leyton Orient in 2016.
He later managed Notts County from January 2017 to August 2018 and took the Magpies to the League Two play-offs in his only full season in charge.
Nolan was first team coach at West Ham during David Moyes’ second spell at the club before he spent a short time with England Under 20s until his arrival at Northampton.
Speaking to Daily Mail Sport’s Inside The EFL column last season after he helped the club avoid relegation, Nolan had said: ‘It’s been great being a number one again. I enjoy making the decisions and having that pressure on you.
‘Management is something I wanted to do again. I had a fantastic opportunity under David at West Ham and learnt so much from him.
‘But I’ve loved every minute of being back, we’ve had some amazing days and getting the job done to keep us up was key.’
The Cobblers, who are the 10th League One club to part company with their manager this season, have 10 matches remaining in 2025-26. They host Burton Albion on Saturday.
