Ivan Toney's goal, just after the half-hour, separated the two sides and Chris Wilder will be delighted with both the result and the clean sheet which came on the back of five goals conceded against Accrington and the promise from the manager of a 'week of hard work' on the training ground.
His side now lie 5th in the League Two table after 10 games, the traditional marker that managers' use to denote their side's progress.
Goalkeeper Jordan Archer stood firm for the Cobblers and was quick to praise the whole team in front of him for their hard work defensively as he celebrated his first game without conceding since joining the club.
Opposition boss Jim Bentley had no complaints about the result, saying afterwards: "We tried to do the right things but there was a lack of thought and some poor final balls where we chose the wrong option."