Will Swindon Town kick on after slaying Cheltenham demons

Mark Kennedy recently rubbished the notion that historical records against other clubs matter going into a game. On a strictly footballing level, he’s right. Various Town defeats over the years at Cheltenham did not present a realistic burden to a group of players whose relationship to the club largely dates back to this summer. 

But, as fans who have been around much longer, it is without a doubt a positive to have that particular duck off our backs.

At the quarter-way mark of the 2024/25 league season, we don’t just have the club’s historical records to contend with; enough games have been played to get an idea of how the current crop are faring. After a sticky start has bled into October, the club finds itself down the wrong end of the league once again. The football itself has been beset by a lack of chances created and errors leading to goals. Kennedy has had to continually shuffle the pack to find his best 11, a task which remains a work in progress.

Saturday’s opening exchanges were hardly out of place with that previous body of work. A new rotation of the pack began the game in a manner befitting of two sides ranked 88th and 89th in the country before kick-off, with a whiplash-inducing skirmish of aimless punts up-field from both sides resulting in very little threat, other than that of neck pain. Michael Flynn’s dour, agricultural Cheltenham played how I would have expected his Swindon side would play back at his unveiling on the County Ground pitch in May 2023, rather than his buccaneering Juego de Posición which burned so brightly for the opening ten games of the last campaign.

While Flynn’s team played their part in making the beginning of the game the way it was, the listlessness of watching Kennedy’s Swindon huff and puff is not an unfamiliar feeling this year. The team have been goalless in four league games so far and had only scored more than once on a single occasion in the league heading into the Cheltenham game; creating chances has been the problem area in the season so far. 

Thankfully, once Swindon clicked into a higher footballing gear, something they have shown aptitude at doing in brief moments this season, goals through George Cox and Will Wright brought Town ahead. Driving home an advantage with glee heavily reminiscent of the win over Newport in September. Is it possible being ahead unblocks Kennedy’s squad, allowing their best football to be played?

It is also fair to point out that Newport and Cheltenham both belong to the group of limited teams Swindon are also part of, making up the league’s bottom half. Town have struggled more against opposition expected to finish higher up the league, especially away from home. While the table can and will look quite different in a few months’ time, another possible hypothesis is that Kennedy’s current approach is effective against similarly embattled opposition.

Given there is quality in the squad - apparently driven on by the second-highest budget since the Di Canio era - perhaps the mindset shift the club requires to turn this season around is to how it approaches games against the better teams in the league.

Perhaps the high water mark of the season so far came shortly after the break, as academy graduate Joel McGregor volleyed Swindon’s third goal. With that, a collection of solid performances, and of course his first professional goal against Bristol Rovers in midweek, the youngster has given Swindon fans much to be proud of. 

Celebrating in front of a packed away end must also have been an incredibly sweet moment for McGregor, whose emergence is perhaps the main positive to take from 2024/25 thus far. Adding the late cameo of Botan Ameen, who, fresh from a goal on debut in the EFL Trophy during midweek, had a promising first league outing. These are certainly exciting times for the academy, fresh from their fantastic FA Youth Cup run in the spring. 

Such a development comes at a good time, too; in an era when the first team squad is so transient, players frequently here for a year and no more, seeing youngsters work their way up and earn their place certainly fills a missing connection fans may feel to the team.

Anyway, like all good dramas, Saturday Afternoon had a third act. It was obvious Cheltenham would apply pressure to the Town rear-guard eventually, and shortly after Kennedy reshuffled the defence, moving Wright into midfield, Cheltenham had their first. Soon they had a second. Both goals were soft to concede; a habit which has cost Town at points this season already. The home side had plenty of time to try and push home the advantage and earn a point or more. 

Watching Town sit on a narrow lead is always a nervous experience. While Flynn’s side pushed and pushed, and Kennedy’s men looked susceptible, it was heartening to see the team successfully employ the dark arts. While Dan Barden’s goal certainly lived a charmed life in the closing exchanges, time-wasting at dead balls and goal kicks; smart yellow cards and clever hold-up play also stemmed the tide of opposition pressure. 

All small moments, but ones which edged Swindon closer to three points behind enemy lines, and will hopefully bolster the team’s belief next time they need to see through a one-goal advantage. Thankfully few of them live with the ghosts of last year.

Is that the 22-year-old duck off the back that everyone needed? A first win at Whaddon Road; a first away win of the season; evidence of thirty minutes of good football; closing out a win with some backs-to-the-wall defending: it’s hard to tell, but please let this be the start of something positive.