‘It was far easier to burn the table tennis table’
Luton Town boss Nathan Jones joked that he ‘burned the players’ table tennis table’ to help them focus on becoming better players.
Jones, who is currently in his second spell in charge at Luton, is hoping to end the club’s 30-year top-flight absence by getting promoted to the Premier League.
The 48-year-old guided the Hatters to promotion from League Two back in 2018, before leaving Kenilworth Road to become Stoke manager.
However, his time at the bet365 Stadium didn’t quite go to plan. During his time away from the club, the Bedfordshire outfit he left secured a second-straight promotion.
The Welshman returned to Luton 18 months later, and is now leading the Championship club to a surprise push for Premier League promotion.
His efforts at Luton have not gone unnoticed, as he picked up the manager of the season accolade at Sunday’s English Football League awards ceremony.
‘We have no superstars’ – Jones
Despite their impressive campaign, none of the Hatters’ players made it into the team of the year – but Jones believe that is actually one of the reasons behind the club’s success.
Speaking to BBC Three Counties Radio, he said: “We have no superstars and we have a group of players that want to achieve something – they are nowhere near their ceiling.
“Outside Luton, everyone would have thought this is a huge, huge surprise, that it couldn’t be done – but inside we had that confidence that we could push boundaries this year.
“Ideally everyone would like to do fantastically well without spending a hell of a lot of money. That isn’t the case in football on all levels but we do it very well.”
Banning table tennis
Jones also revealed that, when he arrived at the club, he believed that some of the squad were too concerned about being good table tennis players, rather than good footballers.
“When I came in, I felt some of the players were more concerned about being good on the table tennis table than they were about being professional footballers,” he added.
“There was a big table tennis culture so I thought I can either cajole them and try to get them into the gym or I can burn the table tennis table.
“It was far easier to burn the table tennis table.”
Can Luton do the unthinkable?
The Hatters need just two points from their final two league matches to secure a Championship play-off spot, and could even secure a place even if they lose both games – should the chasing clubs drop points.
Jones’ men travel to already-promoted Fulham on Monday, before hosting Reading on the final day of the season.
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