Decision made by Luton Town on 17 November 2022 was a Gary Sweet masterstroke: View | OneFootball

When Nathan Jones left Luton Town for Southampton back in November 2022, it was unclear how the Hatters were going to progress.

Luton may not have made the best start to the 2022/23 campaign, having endured a hangover from the play-off semi-final loss against Huddersfield Town at the back end of the previous season, but they were progressing well shortly before Jones' departure.

And it was going to be a difficult task for anyone to come in and succeed the Welshman, with Jones helping to transform the club into Championship promotion competitors.

Interestingly, Gary Sweet and the rest of the Hatters' board decided to appoint Rob Edwards, an interesting choice considering he had previously taken charge of their arch-rivals.

Rob Edwards' path to Luton Town

Edwards already had a decent amount of coaching experience under his belt before his move to Forest Green Rovers during the Spring of 2021, having worked in England's youth setup.

And he made an excellent start to his EFL managerial career, managing to guide FGR to the League Two title despite a wobble during the latter stages of the 2021/22 campaign.

The former defender did enough to earn a move to Watford after that promotion-winning season, although he was criticised by Rovers' owner Dale Vince for the way he handled his switch to Vicarage Road.

This looked set to be a good opportunity though, with the Hornets' CEO Scott Duxbury claiming shortly after his appointment that his side would back Edwards "come hell or high water", even with their managerial turnover rate in the years previous in mind.

That was a promise that was broken, with the 41-year-old being dismissed after just 11 competitive games at the helm.

Rob Edwards appointment proved to be a shrewd move by Luton Town

Considering Vince's criticism and the fact his spell at Vicarage Road didn't go overly well, it was a gamble for Luton to hire Edwards.

It was a big job for the 41-year-old to take, less than two months after being sacked by the Hornets, but the Hatters' faith in him paid off.

Edwards did have the advantage of having the World Cup break to work with his players before taking charge of his first game, but even with that in mind, he made a fairly impressive start to life at Kenilworth Road.

And his team went unbeaten from the latter stages of February 2023 until the end of the 2022/23 campaign, which allowed them to finish in third place.

Managing to turn things around in the second leg to beat Sunderland in the play-off semi-final, they then went on to beat Coventry City on penalties in the final, allowing them to secure promotion to the Premier League for the first time.

Considering the Sky Blues had the likes of Viktor Gyokeres and Gus Hamer at their disposal that day, the Hatters did a great job to come out on top at Wembley.

They didn't gamble and spend huge sums of money during the summer 2023 and winter 2024 windows, which was always going to make it a real challenge for them to remain in the top flight for more than one season.

Points deductions helped to keep them in the race for survival for much of the season, with relegation only being all but confirmed after their penultimate match of the campaign.

Although he couldn't save them from relegation, Edwards has helped to develop many of the Hatters' first-teamers, with Alfie Doughty already being linked with a move back to the top flight.

And with their top-flight level of income from last season in mind, as well as the fact they have some very talented players on their books after making some shrewd signings in the past couple of windows, they are in a much better position now than they were in when Edwards first came in.

Not only is he an asset to have for on-field matters, but he has also contributed off the pitch and conducted himself extremely well during his time at Kenilworth Road.

He seems to be the right man to take the Hatters forward and considering the stability they have, with Edwards remaining in place, it wouldn't be a surprise to see Luton pushing for promotion again next term.

Offering him the job was brave, but like many of CEO Sweet's decisions, it paid off and he could reap the rewards of it again during the 2024/25 campaign and beyond.