Cohen Bramall says he didn’t need a second thought when the chance to join Luton came up this summer – and the defender is already convinced he’s landed in one of the best dressing rooms he’s ever experienced.
After leaving Portsmouth at the end of last season, the 29-year-old had to be patient as he weighed up his next move, but once Alfie Doughty left the Hatters for Millwall, and Matt Bloomfield’s interest became clear, the decision was straightforward.
“When the gaffer showed interest, I bit his hand off, I’ll be honest,” Bramall said. “When I was at Portsmouth last year, we played Luton and they beat us, so as soon as it [contract offer] came in, I bit his hand off. I had mates here – Hacks [Hakeem Odoffin], Walshie [Liam Walsh], Mark McGuinness, when he was here – all said good things, so it was an easy choice for me.”
Bramall arrived at Kenilworth Road hours before Town’s League One curtain-raiser against AFC Wimbledon, joining a squad that has rebuilt over the summer with 14 signings and 14 senior departures. While he is playing catch-up after missing pre-season, far from feeling unsettled, Bramall says it’s been one of the smoothest integrations of his career.
“I’ll be honest. I’m really enjoying it at the moment. It’s just getting minutes under my belt, confidence, and fitness,” he said, adding: “Other than that, I just need to sharpen a few of my tools and I’ll be fine.”
While there’s depth across the most of the pitch after the summer recruitment drive, the left wing-back berth has, at times, been occupied by Milli Alli, who is arguably more effective further up the pitch. But rather than being daunted, Bramall is relishing the challenge. He fully announced himself with a 30-yard free-kick thunderbolt and an assist against Barnet in Town’s 4-1 Vertu Trophy win last week.
“Milli’s doing a great job on the left. It’s really good competition. He’s a great player. And we just need all of us to stay positive and keep this momentum going,” he said.
“It’s good to have that competition. No one wants to get complacent. Once complacency sets in the building, it’s where standards drop. We need to keep the standards as high as possible, to keep pushing.”
Bramall believes that’s also helped by the quality of the group that Bloomfield has assembled after relegation from the Championship last term. That’s where the defender was last season too, with Portsmouth, and having been at a variety of clubs in his career, from Arsenal to Colchester, Lincoln and Rotherham, he says Luton’s squad already stands out.
“We’ve got a great team, a great bunch of lads, great personalities, different backgrounds. It’s probably one of the best dressing rooms I’ve actually been a part of with the experience, the technical ability and the athleticism,” he said. “The athleticism is through the roof. We need to punish teams with that.”
That is one of the areas that Bramall is looking to build on as he’ll be required to in Bloomfield’s currently preferred wing-back system.
He said: “My whole career I’ve played left back. But I do enjoy the wing back as well. It lets me open my legs more. They’re two completely different positions – you have to be fitter to play left wing back.
“That’s going to come. I’m not really fussed as long as I’m playing and making an impact and doing well for the team, that’s all I care about. The gaffer can play me centre back. I’m not entirely fussed. I’m happy wherever he plays me.”
For now, the defender is focused on building momentum after the Hatters found the goalscoring touch with seven strikes across their last two league and cup games before the international break.
“We don’t want to get too low. We don’t want to get too high,” Bramall said. “I know I’ve scored or assisted [against Barnet] and we’ve done really well, but we can’t get too high on that. The game’s done now. We celebrate and we move on. I think it’s just about staying in the middle and going again.”
That mentality will be tested again on Saturday when Plymouth visit Kenilworth Road. With the new-look squad beginning to click, Bramall believes there’s much more to come.
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