Jones needs '˜two or three' quality signings to compete in League One

Hatters boss Nathan Jones believes he only needs to make a handful of signings to have a squad capable of making a sustained challenge in League One next season.
Hatters boss Nathan Jones is already planning for next seasonHatters boss Nathan Jones is already planning for next season
Hatters boss Nathan Jones is already planning for next season

The Luton chief, who saw his side secure their place in the third tier of English football last weekend, had already begun planning for the next level ahead of the current campaign when he made a number of high profile additions.

Jones brought in James Collins, James Shea, Elliot Lee, Harry Cornick, Luke Berry, Jack Stacey, Alan McCormack and Marek Stech on permanent deals, while Lloyd Jones and Jake Jervis arrived in January too.

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They were all made with an eye on League One as although Jones will strengthen during the summer, he doesn’t feel he needs a massive amount, saying: “We actually think we’ve done about three quarters of the job in terms of the players we have here.

“We have a squad, with the ones we bought in last year who weren’t for one league, they weren’t just to get us up, they were to impact again in League One.

“We probably need two or three real, real gooduns, real strong ones, that significantly improve our 11, or add significant competition to the ones that are there, and then we move forward again.

“Because we’ve got good size in our squad, we’ve got good age, good athleticism, plenty of talent, got goals in the side, we’re quite secure in every area, so it’s just about adding that little bit more quality.”

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The Town chief doesn’t expect there to be too many problems in enticing the sort of player he wants to Kenilworth Road either, as he continued: “I’d want to join this football club.

“If I was a player now and I was looking to enhance my future and had to play in a wonderful side and had to come to a wonderful club and to train every day and to enhance my career, but also constantly looking to move forward, by people who want to develop me, want to do well, I struggle to find a better club, I really do.

“I’m biased I know, because I’m the manager of this football club, but I’d want to be here, I would 100 per cent want to be here, and I’d want to tell my mates, because this is such a good place to be and we’re in a good place.

“We are going to enjoy this because it’s a culmination of over two years work, but we always know that we’ve got to keep moving forward and that’s the thing we’ve got to make sure we do.”

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With a whole host of players out of contract in the summer, including Jordan Cook, Lawson D’Ath and Johnny Mullins, then Jones anticipate some departures over the coming weeks.

He added: “There will be one or two that we won’t (move ahead with), one or two will probably move for their own career, that will come out in time.

“If I could move everyone forward, I’d love to as they’re a great group.

“We’ve got two sayings here, what we have and what we don’t have, no passengers and we don’t have any bad characters.

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“They’re great to work with, they’ve given me everything, it’s very difficult.

“But we won’t do that yet (announce retained list), because we’ve still got two games to go and I want them to thoroughly enjoy everything they’ve achieved.

“As doing it with Luton Town is hard and they’ve really stood up to the challenge.”