Chairman Andy Wilcox believes Cheltenham Town have the best manager in League Two as they prepare for their play-off semi-final first leg at Northampton Town on Thursday night (7.45pm).
Wilcox, who is hoping to cap his second season at the helm by securing a return to League One for the first time since 2009, says the Robins have unfinished business.
“I am convinced we’d have gone up automatically if we’d carried on,” Wilcox said.
“It was disappointing we couldn’t see the season out because we were on a fantastic run of five wins and a draw before the season was paused.”
Duff led Cheltenham to a 16 th -placed finish in 2018/19 after taking over a team at risk of suffering relegation to the National League in September 2018.
They have continued their progress this term to finish fourth in the final table, which was calculated on a points-per-game basis.
“Michael is the best at his job in League Two in my eyes,” Wilcox said.
“He is level headed, focused and he’ll be as prepared as he possibly can after 18 or so days of training to guide us through these play-offs.
“It’s been a pleasure to be at the helm of this club this year because we’ve been great to watch, playing some fantastic football so hats off to Michael, his staff and the team.
“They deserve to finish off the job now.”
Wilcox and the rest of the directors will be at Northampton for the first leg, along with former chairman Paul Baker, who remains a majority shareholder.
“It’ll be strange without the fans and I’d love them to have been there to cheer the team on because they’ve been brilliant for us all season,” Wilcox said.
“The players, management and board know they will be there in the background, watching or listening and willing us on.
“We are all together as one team, whether we can be at the ground or not.”
Cheltenham defeated Northampton 2-1 at home at the end February after the sides had drawn 1-1 at the PTS Academy Stadium just after Christmas.
“It’s going to be a very difficult first game after two and a half months off,” Wilcox said.
“They’ll be in our faces and they are dangerous from set pieces, so it’s a tough job.
“All four teams are in the same position, so there are no excuses and all we can do is go out, give our best and try and get across the line because we do feel it’s unfinished business.”
