Hatters full back relishing a ‘tasty affair’ against former Luton boss Nathan Jones

Defender James Justin expects it to be a ‘tasty affair’ when the Hatters come up against former boss Nathan Jones’ Stoke City next season.
Hatters defender James JustinHatters defender James Justin
Hatters defender James Justin

Justin doesn’t have to wait too long to find out when the two teams will meet with the fixtures announced on June 20.

Jones exited Kenilworth Road in controversial fashion in January, departing just days before a trip to Sunderland, leaving a sour taste in many supporters’ mouths.

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On facing his old manager once more, Justin said: “With Nathan being there, that will be a tasty affair to say the least, I’m looking forward to that one.

“I think it’s the fans mostly, we don’t mind Nathan Jones as much as the fans dislike him, as he’s been great for everyone to be honest.

“If you really sit down and think about it, he’s the one that set the structure in place, but I’m looking forward to it.”

With the Championship now home to a number of former Premier League clubs, there are plenty of other sides that Justin is relishing pitting his wits against.

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He continued: “It will be unbelievable with the size of the clubs in the Championship.

“You’ve still got your Aston Villa’s, hopefully they don’t get promoted in the play-offs, Leeds as well, I can’t wait.”

It will be Justin’s first foray into the second tier of English football and he appreciates it may take some time for the club to settle.

He said: “It will be tough, the first few games will be a real eye opener, but I’m sure Graeme (Jones) and Mick (Harford) will do the recruitment and help us along the way.”

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With the track record of new chief Jones, who’s worked at Everton, Swansea, Wigan and Belgium, Justin is excited to see what he will bring to the club.

He said: “I’m sure he’ll come across well, you can only think he’s going to improve you as a player and I’m really excited for it.”

Although not getting ahead of himself either, Justin would love to see if he could try and add a third promotion to his belt while at Luton and follow in the footsteps of teams like Bournemouth who have gone up through the leagues.

He added: “Maybe we can push into the upper league, you’ve got to set your goals high, you’ve got to keep trying and keep grafting every day to make yourself the best player.

“It happens very rarely, but we hope to be that one in a million team that can do it.”