McCANN HAD IT SO GOODE

CHARLIE Goode had a difficult transfer decision to make long before Brentford made him Northampton Town’s most expensive sale.

- David Richardson

The then-19-year-old centre-back had been impressing for AFC Hayes in the Southern League Division One Central after moving up from Step 5 outfit Hadley in 2014.

“We’d put in a seven-day approach but at the same time so had three clubs,” said Hampton & Richmond manager Gary McCann, who was trying to sign him at Isthmian Premier Hendon. “One was Hemel Hempstead, when Dean Brennan was there, who were in the Southern League but the same level as us – we thought we were going to lose him.

“He was a young, tall, no-nonsense centre-back that had good attributes. His brother, Ben, was a goalkeeper we’d known, there was a little link there. We were playing at Harrow Borough at the time so in terms of location it was right on his doorstep.

“He just got a feeling with us, the way we worked and did things, he had a better chance of progressing. Within one season he was out the door.”

Goode had been released by Fulham’s academy at 16 after six years and immediately dropped into Non-League with Harefield United.

Hadley gave him his first experience of senior football and soon he’d reached Step 3 still in his teens.

“It was just like he’d been doing it forever,” said McCann. “You could see within five or six games this kid was destined for greater things.