Can Swindon Bounce Back From Promotion Failure?

A poor end to the campaign cost Swindon Town a chance at promotion to League One, with the departure of David Flitcroft looming large. Phil Brown was unable to lift the team for the closing stages of the season as the Robins fell short of the playoffs.

Flitcroft left the club in March for Mansfield Town as Swindon sat seventh in the table in the final spot in the playoffs. However, following Brown’s arrival, they were unable to click back into gear towards the end of the term, winning just one of their last nine games of the campaign.

Brown now has the challenge of rebuilding the Robins for a new assault on League Two. Swindon’s defensive record was one of the decisive factors in the team’s failure to achieve promotion. Goals came readily for the club through Luke Norris and Marc Richards. There is enough of a building block for a surge towards promotion, with the Robins being backed at 11/4 by Betway to return to the third tier after an absence of two terms.

Consistency will be the key for Brown’s men, although there will be challenges ahead due to the influx of quality dropping down from League One. Milton Keynes Dons, Bury, Northampton and Oldham will all be vying for an immediate return to the third division. Therefore, Swindon have to be flawless in their bid to overcome their poor end to the campaign, starting at the crucial ends of the pitch.

Defence

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The biggest flaw in Swindon’s surge for promotion last season was their defensive record. They conceded 65 goals in their 46 matches – the worst performance out of the sides in the top half of League Two. The Robins did keep 14 clean sheets over the course of the campaign, although the majority of those came in the early stages.

In the crux of the term, Brown’s men were to rue their lack of resilience at the back. In their eight-game stretch without a win they developed a habit of conceding cheap goals towards the end of both halves. Alex Fisher’s late strike for Yeovil would be a defining moment of the season as he denied the Robin three points at the County Ground.

The result would keep them in ninth place, narrowly off the pace of the playoffs. It cost the team momentum in their promotion push, losing back-to-back matches against Newport County and Grimsby Town. The latter of which highlighted their issue with concentration at the back, as the Mariners scored in the second minute of added time in the first half that condemned the Robins to defeat.

Ben Purkiss was used as a centre-back by Brown, and was allowed to leave the club at the end of the season, while Rollin Menayese returned to his parent club Bristol Rovers. Olly Lancashire and Ryan McGivern remain at the Energy CheckCounty Ground and will be part of Brown’s plans for the next campaign. However, Swindon will need further reinforcements to avoid another costly meltdown.

Attack

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Swindon were also lacking a clinical edge in the final third, especially under Brown. Norris led the way with 13 goals in 35 appearances for the club. However, he missed the last six matches of the season, and although he was far from prolific in front of goal, the Robins were poorer without his presence leading the line. Richards arrived from Northampton in January and had an immediate impact, scoring seven goals in his opening eight matches for the club. The 35-year-old struggled towards the end of the season, finding the net just twice in his last nine matches.

Swindon only scored 67 goals over the course of the campaign. Although teams that reached the playoffs, including Coventry and Lincoln, scored fewer, their defensive records were far superior. Compared to teams in the playoffs, the Robins’ +2 goal difference was well off the pace. Developing a cutting edge in the final third would have atoned for their woes at the back. There was occasional support from Paul Mullin and Matt Taylor from the middle of the park, who both notched six goals.

The difference between getting over the line and failure is a 20-goal-a-season striker. Brown will be hopeful that Norris can be that man going forward and remain injury-free in the 2018/19 season.