Crawford completes move to Poppies

Jordon Crawford, who left Corby Town last week, puts the finishing touches to his move to Kettering Town alongside Poppies assistant-manager John Ramshaw. Picture courtesy of Paul Cooke/Poppies Media

Jordon Crawford has been unveiled as Kettering Town’s first summer signing following his departure from Corby Town.

The 24-year-old forward confirmed he was leaving Steel Park last week after five years with his hometown club and, after much speculation that linked him to a move down the A6003, he has now been unveiled as a Kettering player.

Crawford was a star performer for the Steelmen over the last few seasons and the move sees him going from Step 4 to Step 2 with the Poppies where he will link up with his old Corby team-mate Connor Kennedy who swapped Steel Park for Latimer Park two years ago.

Jordon Crawford's move to Kettering will see him reunited with former Corby team-mate Connor Kennedy

And while he admitted it was tough to leave Corby, Crawford believes the time is right to challenge himself at a higher level in the Vanarama National League North.

“I am glad it’s done and it means I can lock in and concentrate now,” he said.

“I am really happy. I think it’s a step up I have needed to make for a couple of seasons and now is definitely the right time to do it.

“It’s a challenge I am ready and excited for. It’s been a long time coming.

“I want to hit the ground running and carry on from where I left off with Corby and help Kettering win games. I want to make a name for myself at this level.

“It wasn’t easy to leave Corby, it’s my hometown club.

“But I think it was a move I had to make, whether it was with Kettering or another team at a higher level. It was a decision I had to make and now was the time to do it.”

Poppies boss Paul Cox described Crawford as “an entertainer” and he revealed he and his staff had been tracking the player’s progress from the moment he arrived as Kettering manager.

“We have kept an eye on Jordon over the last couple of years and I think the one thing with him is that he has been very consistent for Corby in that time,” Cox said.

“He has been very loyal to them, which is good for me because it shows the lad has got a bit of character about him and he looks at the game a little bit differently to others.

“We have watched his progress. People might say it’s a bit of a gamble and it always is when you take on a player from a lower level but this hasn’t been one where we have just heard about him, we have tracked him over the 18 months I have been here.

“He is in the same mould of a Callum Powell in terms of being an entertainer and a crowd-pleaser and his numbers in terms of assists and goals are very healthy.

“We are looking to work with him, improve him even more and we feel we have got a very good player on our hands who can get even better.”