Cadwch yn ddiogel Jacks
Issue 18 - Digital Copy
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Swansea City v Coventry City Wednesday, February 24 - Kick-off 7pm
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CONTENTS Page 15 - Morris out for Season
Page 14 - Meet the Opposition
Page 18 - Match Reports
Page 28 - Q&A with Connor Roberts
Page 42 - Yan Urges Action
Polite Warning: The British courts have now imposed a standard minimum three-year ban from all football grounds for football-related arrests – both inside and outside the ground. CCTV is currently in operation inside and outside the stadium, while police are also using handheld video cameras. Offences include: obscene or racist chanting or gesturing; consuming alcohol in seated areas; continual standing in seated areas; aggressive behaviour; going onto the pitch; throwing of items; drunk and disorderly behaviour or under the influence of drugs. Please note there is also a no-smoking policy within the stadium. If broken, you could be ejected. Sales of goods inside and outside the stadium is prohibited unless via official registered sellers. The club badge is a registered trademark and unauthorised use of it will not be permitted. High-quality cameras are not permitted inside the stadium.
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Chief Executive Julian Winter Board Of Directors Directors: Romie Chaudhari, Bobby Hernreich, Huw Jenkins, Jason Levien, Stuart McDonald, Martin Morgan, Gareth Davies, Julian Winter, Jake Silverstein, Sam Porter Honorary Club President: Alan Curtis; Associate Directors: David Morgan, Cath Dyer Team Management Head Coach: Steve Cooper Assistant Coach: Mike Marsh Behind the Team Goalkeeping Coach: Martyn Margetson Head of Medicine: Dr Jez McCluskey Head of Performance Analysis: Steve Rands Head of Recruitment: Andy Scott Academy Director: Mark Allen Staff: David Tivey, Ritson Lloyd, Ailsa Jones, Matthew Murray, Adele Callaghan, Daniel Morris, Lee Watkins, Chris Watkins, Tom Jenkinson, Daniel Nisbett, Michael Eames, Shaun Baggridge, Huw Lake, Ashley Gill, Steffan Popham
Senior Management Group Andrew Davies (Head of Operations, Facilities & Development); Gareth Davies (CFO); Rebecca Edwards-Symmons (Head of Commercial) Club Staff Club Secretary: Ben Greenwood Assistant Football Secretary: Rebecca Gigg Head of Retail: Andrea Morris Head of Hospitality & Customer Services: Catherine Thomas Legal Counsel, Head of Safeguarding: Rebeca Storer HR Manager: Nicola Butt Senior Commercial Sponsorship Manager: Lee Merrells Commercial Marketing Manager: Katie Hughes Head of Media & Communications: Ben Donovan Media Manager: Chris Wilson-Barney Ticket Office Manager: Luke Hughes Operations & Events Manager: Matthew Daniel Facilities Manager: Gordon David Grounds Manager: Anthony Harry Disability Access Officer: Mark Phillips Community Trust Manager: Helen Elton Club Ambassador: Lee Trundle
Programme Production Contributors: Alex Bennett, Julie Kissick, Alun Rhys Chivers, Ben Donovan, Chris Wilson-Barney, Andrew Gwilym, Jonathan Davies, Sophie Davis, Adam Evans, Gwyn Rees, Ben Jones, Dylan James, Luke Evans, Rachael Tucker Designers: Callum Rothwell, Jordan Morcom Photography: Athena Picture Agency, Natalie Davis, PA, REX Print: DWJ Group Ltd Swansea City AFC Liberty Stadium, Landore, Swansea, SA10 2FA CP-D Dinas Abertawe Stadiwm Liberty, Landore, Abertawe, SA1 2FA Telephone/Ffôn: 01792 616400 Web/Gwe: swanseacity.com Email/E-bost: info@swanseacity.com
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Chief Executive’s Notes
JULIAN WINTER G
ood evening and welcome back to the Liberty Stadium for tonight’s Championship game against Coventry City. I’d like to start my notes by wishing a speedy recovery to Jordan Morris following the injury he sustained at the weekend. Jordan has only been with us a few weeks following his loan move from Seattle Sounders and will now miss the rest of this season. Everyone at Swansea City wishes Jordan all the very best in his recovery. We come into tonight’s game on the back of our first league defeat this calendar year against Huddersfield Town. It was only our fifth league defeat of the season so hopefully we can bounce back tonight and maintain our strong position in the Championship table.
Last week saw the club hold its first ever virtual fans’ forum and it was a real pleasure to engage with our supporters on a number of topics. I will go into more detail about the forum and several other noteworthy subjects in a more thorough piece of communication on our website later this week. I’d also like to take this opportunity to praise our honorary president and club legend Alan Curtis MBE for his efforts in helping to raise £1,500 for local cancer charity Maggie’s. Curt, along with his wife Clare, completed the Walk 50 Miles for Maggie’s challenge in January. This is a wonderful achievement in raising vital funds for a charity who do so much great work in south west Wales.
We’ ve a l s o s e e n yo u n g s t e r Cameron Evans join Irish side Wa t e r f o r d F C o n l o a n , a n d we wish Cameron all the best ahead of the start of the League of Ireland P remier D ivision campaign next month. I’d like to extend a warm welcome to the management, players, staff and directors from Coventry City who have made the trip to Wales for tonight’s game. We enjoyed a fine win the last time we played a league game on home soil against Nottingham Forest, so fingers crossed for another positive result this evening. Enjoy the game,
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Head Coach’s Notes
STEVE COOPER G
ood evening everyone as we welcome Coventry City to the Liberty Stadium.
We don’t tend to spend much time talking about our previous results much, but last weekend was a particularly tough one due to the injury sustained by Jordan Morris. It was a poor performance and defeat, but ultimately our thoughts are with Jordan following his setback. He has sustained significant ACL damage, which means he’s not going to play again for us this season. It’s a cruel injury for a player who was wanting to fulfil his ambition of playing in Europe and also helping us progress this season. Jordan’s a great guy, and despite being here only a short while it’s evident that he’s an excellent professional with a fantastic attitude. We will offer him all the support possible and, whether his next steps of recovery are here or in the US, he will come back strong – I’m sure of that.
The coaching staff have looked back at the Huddersfield game and discussed where we think it went wrong. But, as I’ve said so many times this season, with a game every few days our focus as a group moves quickly onto the next fixture. If you win your last game then you look to continue building your confidence and form; if you lose or draw, you’ve got an opportunity to move on from the last match and put in a better performance. Tonight, we welcome Coventry City to the Liberty. Our game earlier in the season ended 1-1 in a well-contested match at St Andrew’s. They come here buoyed by their victory over Brentford last weekend, but, as ever, we place huge focus on what we can do.
Last weekend saw Cameron Evans join Irish side Waterford on loan for the rest of their season. Cameron made his debut in the FA Cup win over Stevenage a month ago, and this is a great opportunity for him to go and gain some valuable experience of playing regular senior football. Finally, I was part of the recent fans forum meeting on Zoom, where I got to speak to many supporters about on and off-the-field matters. It was a thoroughly enjoyable session, and a hugely important one too – particularly during these testing times of the covid-19 pandemic. The club is looking to do more of them, and I think it’s a great event to pull people together and talk about all things Swansea City. Enjoy the game,
There are a lot of matches to go, and as boring as it may sound, but looking at the match in front of us is the approach we find best.
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MATT GRIMES Captain’s Notes
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It underlines that there are no easy games in this league, and I really believe that anyone can beat anyone.
L ast time we were on home soil we picked up a 1-0 win in dramatic fashion against Nottingham Forest courtesy of a late header from Connor Roberts.
C onor Hourihane gave us a lifeline at the end of the first half and it was a great strike; he has a fantastic left foot . But ultimately we let ourselves down with the goals we conceded.
ood evening and welcome to everyone joining us from around the world for this Championship fixture against Coventry City at the Liberty.
We weren’t as fluent throughout the match as we would have liked to be but we battled well to find the late breakthrough and it proved an important win and clean sheet.
We pride ourselves on how well we’ ve done defensively this season, so to concede four – in the manner we did – was very disappointing.
Next up we headed to the John Smith’s Stadium to face Huddersfield and I think it was a n a w f u l p e r fo r m a n c e ; i t ’ s one of those things that can happen.
There was no time to dwell on that performance and result as we immediately had to switch our foc us t o this evening’s match. We’ve just had to dust ourselves down and be ready to go again.
We weren’t at our best against Forest but we still managed to get three points, but we were as bad as we’ve been this season against Huddersfield. We thoroughly let ourselves down and deserved to lose the game.
Unfortunately, on Monday we heard the devastating news that Jordan Morris’ season is over due to the injury he sustained at Huddersfield. The scan showed he had signific ant ligament damage to his ACL and it was
everything we hoped it hadn’t been following the match. Our thoughts are with him, it’s a horrible thing to happen to anyone, and he’s got our full support. He had fitted in so well since joining us in January, but I have no doubt he will come back stronger and better than ever because that’s the sort of character he is. This evening we host Coventry, who will no doubt be full of confidence following their win over Brentford at the weekend. We know the threats they possess and remember how much of a tough encounter the away fixture was. We’ll make sure that we are ready and hope to get back to winning ways. Enjoy the game this evening!
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Ministry
Group
Ministry
Graphics
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oday, Terry Sinnett writes: In our last notes we extended our total support to Yan Dhanda following the racial abuse he received on social media. It’s disappointing to see that he’s still not received contact from Instagram. We implore them, and other social media companies, to put their houses in order. We’ve recently seen the introduction of our American signings Jordan Morris and Paul Arriola. Playing against the Premier League leaders and having moments in tough league games has been quite a baptism to British football for them. It was particularly sad to see Jordan suffer an injury in the heavy defeat game against Huddersfield, and we wish him a good and speedy recovery. The club and the whole Jack Army were saddened to learn of the recent passing of former goalkeeper Dai Davies at the age of 72. Dai was an integral part of John Toshack’s team that finished sixth in the club’s first ever top-flight season in 1981-82. Dai won 52 caps for Wales between 1975 and 1982. RIP Dai, YJB. The work of the trust goes on despite the pandemic. Last Monday we held our monthly board meeting, and the minutes of that will appear on our website shortly. We were joined by Swans CEO Julian Winter and it is planned that different members of the club’s management team join us each month. This further cements the good local working relationship between us and the club. We thank them for giving us their time.
Stuart McDonald was on the panel for the club’s recent successful virtual fans’ forum and we are working on holding a similar trust Q&A session in the coming weeks. The work of the DSA also continues. Board members are working with the club on the new catering arrangements at the Liberty. A new ‘Global Swans’ group has been set up which aims to bring together supporter groups from all over the UK and around the world. Other initiatives are in the pipeline too. Membership continues to grow. Each member is entitled to be entered into our new monthly prize draw and with prizes varying month to month, that’s another good reason to join. Remember, the trust is made up of fans, just like you. When it was formed in 2001, the mottos were: ‘For the fans, by the fans.’ ‘Get involved, be involved.’ Still so very true. Join now via our website. Tonight, we welcome Coventry City to the Liberty. Saturday’s game reminded us that every game in the Championship is a tough one, and Coventry will be buoyed by their win against Brentford. Let’s hope we get our mojo back, win and return to an automatic promotion place. Enjoy the game. #YJB
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MORRIS TO MISS THE REST OF THE SEASON AFTER CRUEL INJURY BLOW
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wansea City forward Jordan Morris has been ruled out for the rest of the season after suffering a serious knee injury in the weekend defeat at Huddersfield. The January loan signing landed awkwardly after treading on the ball as he controlled a lofted pass, and required lengthy treatment before being stretchered off at the John Smith’s Stadium. Unfortunately, scans have revealed “significant” damage to his ACL, and Morris is facing a long spell on the sidelines which will curtail his 2020-21 campaign. The injury is a cruel blow for the 26-year-old, who had made a positive impression on and off the pitch following his arrival in SA1. “He has had a bad injury, unfortunately, there’s significant ligament damage, (to his) ACL. Everything we hoped it wasn’t, it has turned out to be,” said head coach Steve Cooper.
“It’s the end of his season with us and a long road back to recovery for him. It’s a cruel injury anyway, but in terms of him fulfilling his ambition to play in Europe, and embracing what we are trying to do here, it is a really tough one for him and us to take. “Jordan has our support, we don’t know if his recovery will be here or back in America – those conversations are ongoing - but, first and foremost, we are gutted for him. “He was pushing to get into the team after a spell of getting fit, so it is really unfortunate in many ways. “One thing I will say about Jordan is he is an excellent professional. He is a really good person, and really commits to his profession. “We are sure he will commit to his recovery and come back stronger.”
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COVENTRY CITY
FACT FILE THE GAFFER
OWNER
Joy Seppala
NICKNAME
The Sky Blues
FOUNDED 1883
TWITTER INSTAGRAM FACEBOOK @Coventry_City @CoventryCityFCOfficial CoventryCityFC
STADIUM OPENED St. Andrew’s*
1906
CAPACITY 29,409
LIAM KELLY MARK ROBINS
CLUB DETAILS SOCIAL MEDIA FACILITIES
Robins started his playing career with Manchester United, scoring 11 goals in 48 matches, winning the FA Cup, European Cup Winners’ Cup and European Super Cup. He moved to Norwich City, whom he helped to a third-place finish in the top flight in 1993. He joined Leicester before spells in Denmark, Spain and Greece and rounded off his playing career with Burton Albion. Starting his managerial career with Rotherham before moving to Barnsley. Is currently in his second spell with Coventry, winning two promotions and the EFL Trophy. He started his managerial career with Rotherham before moving to Barnsley, Huddersfield and Scunthorpe.
CLUB CAPTAIN
Scot Kelly spent four years with Kilmarnock and helped them to League Cup glory by beating Celtic in the 2012 final. He made the move to English football with Bristol City a year later, before moving on to Oldham, where he became captain. A clubrecord £210,000 transfer to Leyton Orient followed, and his performances attracted the attention of Coventry ahead of his 2017 move. He proved a key figures in their two promotions back to the Championship.
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*St. Andrew’s groundshare with Birmingham City.
STADIUM MEET THE OPPOSITION Founded in 1883 as Singers FC, they became known as Coventry City in 1898. Nicknamed The Sky Blues after their signature strip, Coventry won the FA Cup in 1987 – the club’s only major trophy – though they also lifted the EFL Trophy in 2017 and recently secured two promotions in three years. An inaugural member of the Premier League in 1992, Coventry were part of English football’s top flight for 34 consecutive years until their relegation in 2001.
COVENTRY CITY’S FORM The Sky Blues have had a handy habit of picking up important wins to keep them clear of the relegation zone for much of the season, and they showed that trait again by beating promotion hopefuls Brentford at the weekend. Prior to that they were winless in their last five leagues games, and they have won just two Championship away games all season
THE KEY MEN No Coventry player has made more starts than Dominic Hyam this season, with the former Reading trainee a regular in Mark Robins’ XI. Summer signing Tyler Walker offers a threat up front while Fankaty Dabo was their player of the year last season. Between the sticks, there’s an interesting battle between Marko Marosi and Ben Wilson for the No.1 role, with both proving their cases in recent matches.
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ONES TO WATCH
JORDAN SHIPLEY
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The former Republic of Ireland Under-21 international has proved a key cog in the Coventry midfield this season. An academy graduate, Shipley’s sole goal this term came in the 1-1 draw between tonight’s sides. Important to the link between midfield and attack, the 23-year-old will be hoping to add to his tally of goals to help the Sky Blues move away from the relegation zone.
POSITION
DF
NATION
AGE
POSITION
25 MF
Rose began his career with Aberdeen, but made just one appearance for the Dons, before a loan spell saw him gather further senior experience at Forfar Athletic. After leaving Aberdeen, Rose signed for Ayr United where he won the Scottish League One title, helping them bounce back to the Scottish Championship. The defender signed for Coventry in 2019 and recently brought up 50 appearances for the Sky Blues.
MICHAEL ROSE
NATION
AGE
23
CALLUM O’HARE A product of Aston Villa’s academy, Callum O’Hare has become a pivotal player in Coventry’s starting XI since initially arriving on loan from Villa in 2019 after success with League Two side Carlisle United. O’Hare helped the Sky Blues secure the League One title in 2020 amidst the Covid-19 pandemic. A month after securing promotion, O’Hare signed permanently for the club on a three-year contract.
POSITION
MF
NATION
AGE
POSITION
23 MF
NATION
AGE
POSITION
22 FW
NATION
AGE
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Brazilian-born midfielder Gustavo Hamer was the Sky Blues’ first summer signing this season. Moving to Holland as a child, he rose through the ranks at Feyenoord until he made his senior debut in 2017. Following a short loan spell at Dordrecht, Hamer signed for PEC Zwolle, making 50 appearances before arriving on British shores. He has represented Holland at youth, under-18 and under-21 level.
The former Swans loanee joined the Sky Blues in January after seeing his temporary spell cut short by parent club Brighton. The Swede scored once – in his final appearance – in 12 games for the Swans, while he got off the mark for Coventry in his second start. In total, the striker has struck has struck three times in 23 appearances for Brighton, Swansea and Coventry this term.
GUSTAVO HAMER
VIKTOR GYÖKERES 19
SWANSEA CITY 1 NOTTINGHAM FOREST 0
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MATCH DETAILS DATE: WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 17 VENUE: LIBERTY STADIUM REFEREE: GEOFF ELTRINGHAM
MATCH REPORT C
onnor Roberts was the hero for Swansea City as his late header secured a dramatic victory over Nottingham Forest at the Liberty Stadium. The wing-back, who also netted the winner in the reverse fixture at the City Ground, settled an otherwise scrappy contest three minutes from time when he powered home from Jake Bidwell’s cross. Roberts’ third goal of the season moved Steve Cooper ’s side up to third place in the Championship table, while taking their clean sheet tally for the season to 16. The result moved the Swans onto 56 points after 28 matches; one behind second-place Brentford - who were beaten by QPR this evening - with two games in hand on the top two. The Swans had been 5-1 winners in the FA Cup fourth-round tie between the sides in January, but this was a far tighter affair. The home side’s clearest chance of the first half came when Jay Fulton failed to properly connect with a free header from a cross by Roberts, while Anthony Knockaert hit the top of the bar on the stroke of half-time for the visitors. But it was the Swans who took the spoils as Roberts arrived late to meet Bidwell’s cross and send a thumping header beyond Brice Samba.
LINEUPS Swans: Freddie Woodman; Kyle Naughton (Jordan Morris, 67), Ryan Bennett, Marc Guehi; Connor Roberts, Jay Fulton, Matt Grimes (captain), Conor Hourihane (Korey Smith, 88), Jake Bidwell; Andre Ayew, Jamal Lowe (Paul Arriola, 83). Subs not used: Ben Hamer, Ryan Manning, Morgan Whittaker, Yan Dhanda, Joel Latibeaudiere, Ben Cabango. Nottingham Forest: Brice Samba; Cyrus Christie, Tobias Figueiredo, Joe Worrall, Yuri Ribeiro; James Garner, Filip Krovinovic (Lyle Taylor, 88), Cafu; Anthony Knockaert (Alex Mighten, 89), Lewis Grabban (captain; Glenn Murray, 75), Joe Lolley. Subs not used: Jordan Smith, Loic Mbe Soh, Jack Colback, Gaetan Bong, Carl Jenkinson, Tyler Blackett.
QUOTE OF THE GAME “IT WAS LIKE NED FLANDERS CROSSING FOR HOMER SIMPSON TO SCORE THE WINNER.” CONNOR ROBERTS ON NEIGHBOUR JAKE BIDWELL 21
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HUDDERSFIELD TOWN 4 SWANSEA CITY 1 MATCH DETAILS DATE: SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 20 VENUE: JOHN SMITH’S STADIUM REFEREE: JOHN BROOKS
MATCH REPORT S
wansea City fell to defeat as three goals inside seven second-half minutes helped Huddersfield Town to victory at the John Smith’s Stadium. The Swans went behind to a Fraizer Campbell strike but levelled right on half-time when Conor Hourihane curled in a free-kick for his fourth goal for the club. But the hosts netted again through Lewis O’Brien and a Duane Holmes brace, with the trio of goals arriving before 10 minutes had elapsed in the second period. And a disappointing afternoon was compounded when substitute Jordan Morris suffered an ankle injury and was stretchered off after receiving lengthy treatment.
LINEUPS Huddersfield Town: Ryan Schofield; Alex Vallejo, Richard Keogh, Naby Sarr; Pipa, Juninho Baunca (Scott High 79), Jonathan Hogg (captain) (Alex Pritchard 84), Lewis O’Brien, Aaron Rowe (Jaden Brown 84); Fraizer Campbell ( Kieran Phillips 72), Duane Holmes (Richard Stearman 84). Subs not used: Joel Pereira, Demeaco Duhaney, Sorba Thomas, Romoney Crichlow. Swansea City: Freddie Woodman; Kyle Naughton (Morgan Whittaker 58), Ryan Bennett (Ben Cabango 46), Marc Guehi; Connor Roberts, Jay Fulton (Yan Dhanda 58), Matt Grimes (captain), Conor Hourihane, Jake Bidwell (Ryan Manning 58); Andre Ayew, Jamal Lowe (Jordan Morris 46). Subs not used: Ben Hamer, Joel Latibeaudiere, Korey Smith, Paul Arriola.
QUOTE OF THE GAME “IT WAS A TOUGH AND DISAPPOINTING AFTERNOON, AND WE ONLY HAVE OURSELVES TO BLAME.” STEVE COOPER 23
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STILETTOS & STUDS BY JULIE KISSICK
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he Terriers could certainly be described as resembling dogs with bones on Saturday after their 4-1 victory over us.
Their eight-game winless run came to an abrupt end as they punctured our impressive form. It was disappointing, especially as our nearest rivals Brentford, who kicked off before us, had lost for the third time in a row. I guess like most of you, I went into the game full of optimism and expectation. But a defeat is hardly disastrous given our recent form. No-one, surely, could have expected us not to lose at some point this season. Perhaps more concerning should be the loss of Jordan Morris, who has only recently joined us on loan from Seattle Sounders. He had to be stretchered off the field and ended up in a knee brace. What an awful start to his time with us - our thoughts and prayers go out to him for a swift recovery. Tonight’s visitors, Coventry City, were the ones who claimed the Bees’ scalp, and will no doubt be buoyed by that victory as they arrive in south Wales. They had previously been on a five-game winless run and earned themselves a temporary climb up the table to 18th, only to end the day where they started in 20th and five points above the relegation places. The victory amounted to what Coventry boss Mark Robins insisted was a “benchmark performance” in their fight to stay in the Championship. The language of sport is often associated with battles and wars fought and lost and Robins commended his
players for their “brave performances” after showing “fight and determination.” He said: “It’s been a real big effort this week from everybody to try and give us that lift, psychologically, to go into this game with as much confidence as we possibly could do.” He also referred to the “spirit” his side showed in overcoming such lofty opposition and there is no doubt that we will need to demonstrate that tonight as we pick ourselves up and focus on making sure the defeat at the weekend was just a blip. Sports psychology is such a vital part of the game today and our players are, I’m sure, much more adept at putting disappointment behind them than we are as fans. If someone who didn’t appreciate the relative insignificance of the result on Saturday had read some of the comments on the various social media platforms this weekend, they could easily have thought that was our season done and dusted. The players will have analysed the last game, dealt with it and moved their focus to Coventry this evening. They can’t afford to dwell on what happened four days ago and neither should we. As well as Brentford losing, Reading and Bournemouth also dropped points at the weekend and we still have two games in hand. This is a tough league and bad results happen – noone has a right to win every game they play. We go again. Keep the faith Jacks.
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n aml gall anafiadau roi pêl-droed yn ei gyddestun. Roedd Abertawe ymhell o’u gorau yn erbyn Huddersfield ar ddydd Sadwrn, ond mae cefnowgyr wedi dod i arfer gyda diwrnodau fel hynny weithiau yn y Pencampwriaeth, yn enwedig mewn tymor mor hynod â’r un rydyn ni ynddo ar hyn o bryd. Colled yn erbyn tîm Carlos Corberan oedd y cyntaf i’r Elyrch ei ddioddef ers colli 2-0 yn erbyn Derby County ym Mharc Pride ganol mis Rhagfyr. A gwaethygwyd prynhawn diflas i ochr Steve Cooper yn ystod yr ail hanner yn Stadiwm John Smith wrth i Jordan Morris gael ei orfodi oddi ar y cae. Edrychodd yr Americanwr mewn anghysur difrifol ar ôl cwympo i’r dywarchen 15 munud yn unig ar ôl disodli Jamal Lowe cyn yr ail hanner. Mae meddygon wedi ei asesu mewn ymgais i bennu maint yr anaf, er i Cooper ei hun gyfaddef nad oedd yn edrych yn dda i’r chwaraewr ar fenthyg o Seattle Sounders wrth siarad â’r cyfryngau ar ôl y gêm yn Huddersfield. “Nid yw’n edrych yn dda,” meddai Cooper. “Dydw i ddim yn gwybod i ba raddau. Mae mewn llawer o boen. Rydyn ni i gyd wedi croesi ein bysedd ar ei gyfer. “Bydd yn teithio yn ôl [i Abertawe ar ôl y gem yn erbyn Huddersfield] gyda ni. Bydd yn cael y sylw gorau cyn gynted â phosib.” Roedd gan y clwb obeithion anhygoel o uchel am Morris ar ôl ei arwyddo ar fenthyg gan Seattle Sounders ym mis Ionawr.
Roedd angen mwy o gymorth i Andre Ayew a Lowe oddi ar y fainc yn dilyn yr anafiadau a ddioddefodd Wayne Routledge a Liam Cullen yn erbyn Nottingham Forest yn yr Cwpan FA. Ond mae’n ymddangos bellach bod Morris wedi cael ei ddwyn o’r cyfle i ddangos i’r rhai yn ei famwlad yr hyn y mae’n wirioneddol alluog i’w wneud yn Ewrop. Roedd y benthyciad hwn yn cynrychioli cyfnod enfawr yng ngyrfa yr dyn sy’n chwarae i’r UDA, fel sy’n wir am ei gyd-Americanwr Paul Arriola. Ac roedd dydd Sadwrn yn atgoffa creulon o sut y gall anafiadau llethol fod i chwaraewyr, waeth pa mor ddifrifol ydyn nhw. Fe fydd Abertawe yn ceisio rhoi eu perfformiad Huddersfield y tu ôl iddyn nhw trwy ymateb yn erbyn tîm caled yn Coventry City yn Stadiwm Liberty heno. Nid yw’r Elyrch wedi colli gemau cefn wrth gefn yn y Bencampwriaeth y tymor hwn tra eu bod yn ddiguro mewn 12 gêm gynghrair gartref, dilyniant sy’n ymestyn yn ôl i fis Hydref. Mae’r anaf i Morris bellach yn rhoi cyfle i Arriola a Morgan Whittaker ddisgleirio. Mae recriwtio Abertawe wedi bod yn hynod drawiadol o dan y drefn bresennol, a sicrhawyd bod chwaraewyr eraill hyd yn oed wedi dirywio oherwydd anafiadau, wedi bod yn barod i gamu i’r adwy. Bydd pawb sy’n gysylltiedig â’r clwb yn gobeithio y bydd Morris yn gwella’n gyflym, ond mae’n rhaid i’r ffocws droi yn awr at yr hyn a fydd yn ornest anodd iawn yn erbyn Coventry wrth i Abertawe anelu at gael eu dyrchafiad yn ôl ar y trywydd iawn.
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Q&A WITH CONNOR ROBERTS
Age: 25 Position: Right Back Nationality: Welsh Clubs: Swansea City 133 Apps, 9 Goals, Yeovil Town (Loan) 54 Apps, Bristol Rovers (Loan) 5 Apps, Middlesbrough (Loan) 4 Apps
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CONNOR ROBERTS HAS LONG BEEN A FAN FAVOURITE AMONG THE JACK ARMY, AND THE POPULAR WING-BACK HAS BEEN ENJOYING ANOTHER FINE SEASON IN SWANSEA CITY COLOURS. BUT DON’T EXPECT THE ‘ CRYNANT CRISTIANO’ TO BE CONTENT AS HE OUTLINES THE DESIRE TO MAKE HIS MARK FOR HIS BOYHOOD CLUB, WHERE THAT RELENTLESS WORK ETHIC COMES FROM, AND EXPLAINS WHY HIS LONG-THROW AND SET-PIECE EXPERTISE ARE NO SURPRISE TO HIM. Connor, we are speaking just after the win over Nottingham Forest where you added another goal to your tally for the season. You have three goals and five assists, but how do you rate the season you are having? I think the big thing for me has been playing regularly, getting into that rhythm and then working constantly to try and better myself and my performances. I think I have done that for a large part of the season and contributed going forward. I don’t think I’ ve shirked my responsibilities going the other way either when it comes to the defending and that’s what we build things on, that foundation of clean sheets and not conceding many. I’ve been pretty happy with how the season has gone, but you always want more and there is still time yet to maybe get some more goals and assists.
Wing-back seems to be a position that really suits you, it allows you to be involved in both boxes and allows you to use your energy to cover the space in between. Do you enjoy the responsibility that comes with being so heavily involved? Definitely. I like to think the staff and players know what they are going to get from me. That I am going to be committed, that I am going to be up and down the flank and looking to contribute. It is a job where you have to be prepared to do a bit of everything, you are not just an attacker, you are not just a defender and you are not just a midfielder. You have to be able to do a bit of everything, and I feel I have got the balance of the role just about right in most of the games this season. Obviously, that’s not just down to me. That comes from working with the right-sided centre-back, from working with the forwards, from working with the midfielders and understanding where all the parts fit in different parts of the field. It’s something we work very hard on. We have had a lot of joy on the flanks with Jake and myself, which shows it is working. I had played there before under Carlos Carvalhal, under Graham Potter and I have also played there for Wales, so it was not completely new, but I feel this has been the most successful attempt to play that way I’ve experienced in my career so far. It’s got the best out of me and the other lads, it allows us to get Andre Ayew closer to the goal rather than pulling wide to get the ball. It feels like a better balance than when we played right-back and right wing together.
Personally, I have felt good and like I’m having my best season so far, but I felt I also had a good season under Graham Potter. But, we are doing better as a team and winning more games, and I am happy with that.
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And we’ve seen you adding in long throws, taking set-pieces and some incredible leaps for two of your goals this season. Are those things you’ve worked on to add to your game? I have always had those things in the locker, it’s maybe that I’ve not been in a position to show them before. For example, I’ve always been able to throw the ball a long way, but it’s not maybe been something we’ve looked at much with Swansea. But you can see this season it gives us a different option, and it’s proved very effective on occasions like for Ben Cabango’s goal at Barnsley. We are doing whatever it takes to win, grinding out results even when we’ve not played as well as we like. But the ability to run and everything else has always been there. I don’t think I was able to show it so much last season, but I feel it is there this season and part of that is the understanding with the team as a whole. Your athleticism and relentless ability to get up and down the flank is something that stands out for supporters. Did you always have that ability? For example, were you a good middle-distance runner as a youngster? To be honest, the running up and down part of the game is the easy bit. I have always been able to run and keep repeating that. But running around is not what wins football games on its own. There’s no point making all those runs if you can’t pick the right pass, if you can’t show the necessary quality when the chance is there, or if you can’t take the right position or option defensively. To me, those are the hard parts of the game. We are professional sportspeople at the end of the day, running up and down is the least of the job really, that’s non-negotiable. If I was not able to do that then people would be right to wonder whether there was any point in me being here, you’ve got to be ready to put the effort in. I think it helped that I took part in loads of different sports when I was a kid, I played every sport I could and I think it helped my all-round energy.
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I did some athletic s, I played rugby, I liked swimming, cricket. I was always on the go, I was always doing something. I think that has always been inside of me, to go out there and leave everything out there. I can always have bad games, but there is never an excuse to stop running and not put that effort in. I’ll always have that as long as my legs allow me to do it. You talk about always wanting to be working, always wanting to be doing something. Where does that come from? Is it just something ingrained in you? I’m not entirely sure where it comes from, but it’s not just about when I am playing football or swimming, it extends to my everyday life really. I have to be doing something. It might be cleaning the house, it might be doing my woodwork, it might be taking the dogs for a walk, it’s just there. I think it’s within my family. Okay they are not in sport, but they always like to be busy, to be doing something, not just sitting around. That was born inside me, to keep working hard. My mother, my grandad, all the people I know throw everything into their day-to-day life. So, when I get to play football that is something I have to do, and this season I feel I have added some quality. You have to be passionate about what you are doing, you have to commit to it otherwise you are not giving 100 per cent of what you have. Whatever you do, you have a cause to give to and you have to be invested in that. In games I show my emotions, I might show that I don’t like a decision, I might shout at the referee, but I am in control of myself. It’s all part of that will to win and wanting to be successful. It’s the same in training and I am sure the coaches would tell you the same. There might be the odd time the red mist does come down for a few seconds, but it is all about wanting to be the best I can for myself and the football club. I know where the line is, and I feed off that emotion to work hard.
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I take energy from it, it’s hard to explain but I have worked so many years to be in the position I am in. So why would I waste it by not giving my best, or being fully switched on and focused to trying to play well and win? What would be the point of being like that? I can have good games, I can have terrible games, but that must not come from a lack of effort. You talk about being driven. How much does getting back to the Premier League motivate you having been a part of the squad that was relegated three years ago? I know people will look at relegation and say it’s not something I really had any part in as I wasn’t involved for the whole season and I was a young player. But Swansea City is my life, so it hurt just as much having played 5-10 games as it would have if I had played 30. It’s still a huge disappointment, it’s still a kick in the teeth. It is gutting. I’ve got emotional when I’ve been asked about it since in interviews, and at some stage you have to be able to put those things to one side and focus on what we are doing now. I think I’m getting to that point. It was absolutely devastating, but I also look back and wonder if we hadn’t been relegated, would I have had the chance I have had to play so many games? Would I have gone on to play for Wales and qualify for a major tournament? Would Joe Rodon have played? Would Oli McBurnie, Daniel James, Matt Grimes, Jay Fulton? Obviously, everyone wants to play in the Premier League and we definitely do. But the Championship has given us an appreciation of the position we are in, being able to put results together and having a winning environment. We always believe we can win any game. I know you have one eye on becoming the academy graduate with the most first-team appearances. Why is that something that matters to you?
If someone were to ask the question as to which academy player went on to make the most first-team appearances, then it is your name attached to it until someone beats it. It would be nice to achieve, especially when you look at some of the players who have come through. I’m on nine goals so it would be a nice thing if the numbers would line up and I can have 10 goals and 150 appearances under my belt. If we can get promoted with that it would be amazing. But I always have an eye for those little landmarks, when I started I wanted to play 50 games and it went from there. But the only way I will get there is by working hard and continuing to play well, so that has to come first if any of that is going to happen. And finally, you talk a lot about wanting to make the most of the opportunity you have, wanting to show the fans your commitment to the cause. What impression do you hope you are able to leave on supporters in the way you play? It’s just simple really, I would want people to feel that I have always given everything I have for the club. As I said, I will have good games and I will have bad games. I will have games where I am okay and nothing better. That’s part of being a footballer and it happens to everyone. But I would not be able to accept those things happening if I could not look at myself in the mirror and say I gave it everything I had. You never know how things can go in football, it can be a cruel game sometimes and fate and fortune can play a part in things. So, the only thing you can absolutely control, is your own attitude and your own desire. If people look at how I play, or look back in however many years’ time, and say ‘fair play to Connor Roberts, he always gave his best’, then I would be happy with that because I know as a supporter myself what it means to see players make that effort for that shirt and that badge.
It is something I keep an eye on, I can’t lie about that. I think Joe Allen had the record with 150, so I can’t get to it this season even if I play every game. But it is something that would hopefully reflect positively on me, and it would be something that can’t be taken away from you.
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C
JACK THE LAD
lub badges and crests have always fascinated me. When I was a youngster you could collect stickers featuring the badges of clubs from around the world. By learning about the badge you could find out about the history of the club, but quite often also learn a lot about the town, city or region the club represented. I was always intrigued about badges which featured animals, especially when those animals weren’t obviously connected to the club or its name.
Why Ipswich Town have a huge white carthorse on their badge is another one that puzzled me. Being described as a carthorse has never been a particularly complimentary comment for a footballer. So why on earth would you put one on your club shirt? The horse in question is in fact a Suffolk Punch, which as the name suggests hails from the Ipswich area.
The Swans having a swan on their shirt obviously didn’t take too much working out.
But far from being a carthorse, the Suffolk Punch is a hugely respected and noble animal.
Likewise, Wolverhampton Wanderers having a wolf as their emblem didn’t stretch my primary school knowledge too much either.
Knights in shining armour used to ride the animals in combat at ancient pageants. They continued to be popular sporting horses as recently as the reign of Henry VIII, who favoured them because they could carry his considerable frame!
But why did Roma have a wolf on their badge? And why were there two human babies feeding like cubs from the wolf. That was just beyond weird for an eight-year-old me! But it made me want to learn more, and so I discovered the myth of the brothers Romulus and Remus and how the city of Rome gained its name. A nd my mum used to s ay I wouldn’t learn anything from
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kicking a ball around or burying my head in football comics and books for hours on end!
So, not such a bad animal to have on your club badge after all. But the one that really had me befuddled was the elephant which sat proudly on the badge of today’s visitors Coventry City! From watching Tarzan and Jungle Book, I was fairly certain that elephants generally hailed from Africa and Asia.
So why did a club based quite literally slap bang in the middle of England have an elephant standing on a football on its badge - and why was it carrying a castle? Now before you all start pointing at the number of lions that are included on club crests, I know you don’t generally see them wandering the streets around Millwall’s New Den, Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge or even Villa Park. But lions have always been a popular feature of heraldry, so it’s not surprising to find them cropping up on a number of city coats of arms and football club badges. But elephants? For all their nobility and strength, they ’re not as common as lions on your average coat of arms. And why does the city of Coventry seem to have such a close association to the animal? A pparently, the elephant is symbolised all over the city - there is even a vaguely elephant- shaped leisure centre! Well, one theory is connected to the legend of St George and dragons! It is said that St George, that wellknown dragon slayer, was from Coventry. And legend has it that the favourite food of dragons were baby elephants. Who knew?
This, understandably, also made dragons the arch enemy of elephants, so elephants have also been historically linked with the city of Coventry due to its link with St George. Got it? I won’t even begin to explain why the elephant has got a castle on its back, or why, since I first spotted the badge back in the 1970s, an eagle and a phoenix have been added to the badge. Although the phoenix is possibly a poignant nod to the fact that Coventry rose from the ashes following the city being devastated during World War II bombing raids. But whatever the reasons behind the mini-menagerie of exotic animals on Coventry’s badge, it’s certainly one of the most iconic badges in British football and the club’s fans are quite rightly fiercely proud of it. In January 2005, the club decided to unveil a modern new design for the badge to coincide with the club’s move to the Ricoh Arena. The plan backfired spectacularly. Although the new badge still featured an elephant , there was a massive backlash from
supporters who branded it “tacky, simplistic and will date rapidly”, “an embarrassment to the club and supporters” and “terrible!!!.”
Now I can’t imagine any other design on a Swans shirt and would probably campaign vociferously against any future change!
A poll in the Coventry Evening Telegraph showed a staggering 98 per cent of fans were against the new badge and a campaign was launched.
Although I have to admit I was a fan of the one-off celebratory crests introduced for the centenary season and the anniversary of Swansea becoming a city.
Within days of the new badge being unveiled, it was ditched and the existing design was kept.
One pet hate I do have about club badges, whether they are the old traditional coat of arms type designs, or the more stylised modern versions like ours - is printed badges!
T hat ’s the thing about club badges, they mean a lot to us fans. Since I started supporting the Swans in the seventies, we’ve changed our badge a number of times and on each occasion there has been an element of controversy to each of those updates. I have to admit, when the current design was first unveiled I wasn’t entirely convinced. It was a little too modern for a traditionalist like me. But the badge soon grew on me and it has obviously been associated with one of the most successful periods in the club’s history.
I absolutely hate it when kit manufacturers print club badges on playing or replica shirts rather than stitching them into the jersey. I don’t mind it so much on training gear or other merchandise, but the club badge is sown into the very fabric and history of a club. So, at the very least it should be sown into the fabric of the club shirt. Whether it’s a swan, an elephant, a horse or a wolf, these animals are a huge part of the history of our clubs and their communities. C’mon you Swans!
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31/07/2018 13:53:55
SWANS ACADEMY BY MARK ALLEN
G
ood evening all. The under-18 programme is now back under way and after a friendly game against Exeter in midweek we returned to league action at Cardiff on Saturday. A poor start to the game saw us fall behind to two soft goals in a disappointing first half. A tough and honest half-time talk saw us come out and play in a manner we have come to expect. Within five minutes, a well-worked move from back to front saw Cameron Congreve strike a low effort into the corner of the net to put us right back in the game. To be fair to the boys, we dominated the game for the next 35 minutes but could not find the elusive equaliser which I believe would have seen us go on to win the game. Despite several chances we lost 2-1 albeit with an improved performance in the second half. The important lessons the boys must take from this is the importance of starting games on the front foot and not allowing teams such an advantage in the early stages of matches. In today’s notes I take the opportunity to talk a little about the integrated approach we have across all disciplines throughout the academy with an insight into our local recruitment approach.
For example, seeing the likes of Connor Roberts and Ben Davies from Neath, Narberth’s Joe Allen, Swansea’s Joe Rodon or Ben Cabango from Cardiff come through the academy system and represent their country, should provide clear inspiration for all young, aspiring footballers in local communities, with optimistically, many more to come off our conveyor belt. Currently, we operate a development programme that is becoming more streamlined to producing players for the academy with a ‘quality over quantity’ mentality. We then look to transition the more advanced players to the Landore training facility for further assessment on one night per week to be considered for an academy trial. As the boys get older, they start to grow and mature, all at different rates. It’s essential that our scouts continue to monitor their developments and make sure that all improvements are noted. Our scouts will have a clear understanding of what to look for to see through the chaos of predictable adolescent changes and ensure that it’s never too late to be ‘picked up.’ As always, we will look to engage with school association matches and the ever-evolving FAW academy programme to guarantee that there is a viable pathway into the club.
Jack Chapman heads up our local recruitment from the pre-academy to our under-15 age group. Local recruitment is imperative to our club and will continue to be the lifeblood. As with any club, the importance of alignment across philosophy, coaching and recruitment is of paramount importance.
Finally, there is the continued support shown by the senior management team at Swansea City - in particular, Steve Cooper and Andy Scott. Although their priority will always be first-team performance, their first look for new additions will always lay within the academy, which should lead to a huge source of inspiration for those involved at all levels of the local game.
At Swansea City, we have a distinct model of playing that needs to be constantly reviewed in line with the movement of professional football demands from a 360-degrees perspective.
In future editions, I will talk about how national recruitment from the ages of 16-21 supports and extends from this to combine and form our overall recruitment strategy.
All of this starts with the love of the game at the grassroots level. We have designated scouts in each corner of South Wales to identify and recommend talented players who may possess the characteristics and attributes to one day, hopefully, pull on the famous white shirt at the Liberty Stadium.
Good luck tonight to Steve and the lads,
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AL-HAMADI RELIEVED TO END INJURY NIGHTMARE
A
li Al-Hamadi was relieved to put his recent injury nightmare behind him with a hat-trick in Swansea City Under-23s’ victory over Charlton Athletic. The Iraqi-born forward bagged his first treble for the development side as they twice came from behind to see off the in-form Addicks 4-3 at Princes Park last week. It was the perfect way to mark his first full 90 minutes since September, having been ruled out for the last four months after sustaining a pars fracture to his lower back. Al-Hamadi returned to action this month as he played the opening 60 minutes of the under-23s’ draw with Queens Park Rangers at Landore. And after taking his goal tally for the season to four, the 18-year-old was pleased by the performance levels he demonstrated following his lengthy spell on the sidelines. “It’s great to finally get back on the pitch and show people what I can do,” he said. “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t over the moon. What pleased me the most was my performance. “After being out for such a long time – especially after the injury I had – you maybe lose a little bit of confidence going into certain tackles because you’re just scared that the injury might happen again.
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“But I played 60 minutes against QPR and thought I did alright for my first game in four months. “Then, to play 90 minutes and get three goals, I couldn’t have asked for a better first full game back.” Al-Hamadi, who signed his first professional contract in the summer, made a bright start to his maiden campaign with the under-23s; scoring in the 5-1 rout of Cardiff on the opening day. But his momentum ground to an untimely halt just a few short weeks later. “I felt my back during the second game of the season against Bristol City and played through it,” he reflected. “As a footballer, you’re just desperate to play all the time. “I couldn’t move or run properly, I couldn’t jump, I couldn’t land – I was just in excruciating pain. “I went to see the physio and the scan showed that I had a fracture. “It’s a 12-week recovery plan. For the first six weeks, you can’t do any force work, you have to rest. All you can do is core work in the gym, ice and massage. “It was a tough rehab, but I just worked hard to get through it.”
WRIGHT ADMITS ‘FRUSTRATION’ AFTER DERBY DEFEAT
A
nthony Wright admitted his Swansea City Under18s were left frustrated after marking their return to Professional Development League South action with a 2-1 defeat by Cardiff City last weekend. Appearing in their first game since December 12, the young Swans looked rusty during the first half at the Cardiff International Sports Stadium; conceding twice in the space of five minutes to Ntazana Mayembe and Frazer Thomas. However, the visitors responded brilliantly after the break; quickly pulling a goal back thanks to Cameron Congreve’s marvellous individual effort. The momentum was certainly with the Swans, who looked threatening going forward with the pace of Adrian Akande and Rio Campbell down the flanks. And it was only a couple of stray passes in the final third that prevented them from drawing themselves level in the contest. Wright says his players were made to rue their lacklustre first-half display, but has encouraged them to take the lessons learned from the game on board. “The players are a little bit frustrated with the result – especially given the way we played in the second half,” he said. “Even at 2-0 down, I still think we could have gone on to win the game.
“We knew what sort of game it was going to be. We knew Cardiff would press us and be aggressive on the ball. “As a team, we fell into that trap a little bit during the first half. We didn’t get on the ball enough in areas that I would like us to. “I don’t think Cardiff created too many chances; it was mainly down to our mistakes. Because of the high press, they got a couple of half-chances and the two goals we conceded were poor. “I thought we looked a completely different team in the second half. We showed good character and all the momentum was with us; I thought we were in total control. “Unfortunately, as much of the ball as we had, we just made a couple of decisions that didn’t go our way in the final third. “It’s a young group and they must learn from that as individuals. I’ve got no doubt that they’ll get better.” But the under-18s coach insists his players have no time to dwell on the result. “The good news is that we have games coming thick and fast,” he added. “We’ll give other players the opportunity to play, but we expect the same fundamentals. “I’ve told them they must not mope around over this result, and be ready to go again.”
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A CENTURY OF LEAGUE FOOTBALL Historian Gwyn Rees looks at the club’s campaigns throughout its 100-year involvement in the Football League divisions and Premier League.
1995-1996 FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION TWO (FINISHED 22ND)
The sense of chaos continued, with chairman Doug Sharpe soon announcing the sale of the club to millionaire Michael Thompson. The man from the West Midlands said all the right things to the press, talking about wanting a new stadium, a top manager and targeting an effort to get the club back to the top-flight. However, the next manager was a certain Kevin Cullis, whose only previous management experience had been with the Crawley Town youth team. After two miserable games in charge, and reports of players taking over a half-time team talk in one of them, he was soon sent on his way and Sharpe returned to take control of the club.
Following an eventful 1994-95 campaign, the preseason was not short of talking points as it saw major departures from the club. Jason Bowen joined Birmingham City for £350,000, John Ford signed for Bradford City in a deal worth £210,000 to the club, while Andy McFarlane was sold to Scunthorpe United for £15,000. And there was worry amongst supporters with the only signing coming into the club from West Bromwich Albion in the form of Carl Heggs, who cost £60,000.
Some much-needed stability and forward thinking was applied when the club appointed Liverpool great Jan Molby as player-manager. The Dane helped pull together a good run of form, but the damage had been done prior to his arrival and a return to the basement division of the Football League could not be prevented.
1996-1997 FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION TWO (FINISHED 5TH)
Then, with the season only seven weeks old, manager Burrows shocked everyone connected with the club by tending his resignation. This came out of the blue to most people and Bobby Smith was handed the task of stepping in as caretaker manager. One of his first decisions was to sanction the transfer of Steve Jenkins to Huddersfield for £275,000, only adding to the sense of turmoil at the club. A 7-0 capitulation at Fulham in the FA Cup did little to help matters, and a dispute between Smith and the board ended with his departure and the handing of the caretaker reins to Jimmy Rimmer.
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The dramas of the past two seasons had made Swansea City something of a laughing stock amongst rival supporters, and all Swans fans hoped that the new management team could restore some belief back into the players, and with it some much needed pride in the club.
As player-manager, Molby stood out on the pitch with his vision and range of passing, but once again chairman Sharpe repeated his wish to put the club up for sale. This made the relationship between the manager and chairman something of a strained one, though the results on the pitch were impressive, and the team stood in fifth place in the league going into the New Year. There were early exits in both major cup competitions, leaving the sole focus on the league, and the consistent results on the pitch saw the Swans finish in the play-off places at the end of the regular season. Chester City were the opponents in the two-legged semi-final and, after a battling 0-0 draw away from home in the first leg, the Swans booked a place at Wembley with a comprehensive 3-0 win at the Vetch Field in the return leg. The final at Wembley saw the team play against Northampton Town, in a game that was more notable for high endeavour than any moments of real quality or goalmouth incident. Then, just two minutes from time, Northampton’s John Frain broke Swansea hearts. His retaken freekick beat Roger Freestone and ensured it was the Cobblers who would go up. It was heartbreak for the Swans, but there was joy for the father of one of the current crop as Andy Woodman – father of current goalkeeper Freddie – was between the sticks for Northampton that day.
1997-1998 FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION TWO (FINISHED 20TH)
After the pain of that Wembley defeat, there was no shortage of off-field news before the following campaign as Sharpe announced that the club had new owners in the former of Silver Shield Group PLC. The group was run by two businessmen; Neil McClure was the new chairman, with Neath-born Steve Hamer serving as his vice-chairman. The announcement to the local media again spoke of the desire for a new ground, a top-to-toe overhaul of the club and a long-term goal of reaching the Premiership, as it was then known. They were positive words, but the drawn-out saga saw some players leave due to uncertainty over their futures. Steve Torpey joined Bristol City in a deal worth £400,000, while Dai Thomas left for Watford in exchange for £100,000. The previous season’s heartbreak seemed to carry on into the new season and, though the opening games were won, slowly the side slipped alarmingly down the league. Molby and his assistant Billy Ayre were dismissed in early October, leaving the new owners free to bring in their own choice of manager in the shape of Micky Adams. Adams was a much sought-after young manager, who agreed to take over only if he was given two weeks to assess the squad and report back to the owners. Just three weeks and three games later Adams resigned, citing that the team required urgent surgery, but that he had been told there would be no money available for team strengthening. Rather than look for a replacement for Adams, the board decided to give the job to the former manager’s assistant Alan Cork. It all had a pantomime feel to it, and there was no doubting the size of the task faced by Cork. The season petered out, with the squad doing just enough to keep out of the bottom two places in the league. Some useful additions were also made in the form of Nick Cusack, Julian Alsop and Matthew Bound. All were players who would help the club going forward, but Cusack would have the greatest impact as he would go on to become a pivotal individual at the Vetch Field, playing an even bigger role in Swansea’s affairs a couple of years later.
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DHANDA URGES SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANIES TO TAKE ACTION
an Dhanda has urged social media companies to take responsibility and play their part in preventing further racist abuse being posted on their channels.
Y
“I think if you still want to send abuse and be racist and discriminate others, then you can be tracked down, your account can be banned and you can’t make another one.
The Swansea City midfielder, who is British Asian, was subjected to appalling racist abuse on Instagram following the FA Cup fixture with Manchester City last week.
“Until people have to prove their identity before signing up to these social media websites, then I can’t see anything changing. Social media companies are just adding fuel to the fire.”
The club is assisting South Wales Police with their investigation, while Dhanda has had the full backing of everyone at Swansea City, along with messages of support from fans of opposing clubs up and down the country.
Facebook, who own Instagram, have restricted the person who sent the message from posting on Instagram for a set period of time.
The midfielder recently spent an hour with local, national and international broadcasters and written media to put his views across and increase pressure on social media companies to act more swiftly and impose stricter measures on how users create accounts to prevent anyone else from being subjected to any racist abuse. “If I could sit down with social media companies, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter - whoever it is – I’d tell them there should be some sort of proving who you are before you even sign up to the social media apps that you want to use,” said the 22-year-old.
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The leniency shown in respect of the account user’s punishment disappointed everyone at Swansea City, and the club has backed Dhanda’s call for stronger action from social media companies in order to stamp out this type of toxic behaviour. Dhanda added: “I think this is where a big problem is with the social media companies, for anyone to create an account and be whoever they want to be and hide behind the screen and say whatever they want to whoever they want, it’s bad and that’s why I’m trying to speak know because things need to change.
and saw the way that it affected me, I think that immediately there should be alarm bells ringing and they should want to speak and try and come up with a solution to how we stop this. But for them not to do that, it just proved that they’re not really too bothered about the victims’ feelings.” Dhanda, a former England Under-17 international, is one of only 10 British Asians among around 4,000 professional footballers in the United Kingdom. His passion to succeed in the game and break down barriers for fellow British Asians is a big motivation. “My dream is for many, many Asian players to come through and play professionally,” added Dhanda. “I am one of very few Asians in the football game. But that excites me and gives me the chance to break down barriers and be a role model for many kids. I’m super proud of where I’m from and that’s why it hurt me so much receiving the abuse.”
“All the social media companies have to do is put themselves in the shoes of the person who is being abused. I’m not just talking about myself. I see abuse getting sent to women footballers, people for the way they look, racial comments, comments about people’s disabilities – it shouldn’t happen. “The social media companies see it every single day. Anyone with a good heart wouldn’t let this happen. Anyone who understood the pain that people go through who are getting the abuse - it shouldn’t happen. “When the punishment came out for the person who abused me and I saw it on Twitter, I immediately responded with how I felt and put a comment on there, saying social media companies are actually adding fuel to the hate and allowing people to get away with doing it again. “I haven’t had conversations with the social media companies, but that reply, my tweet, was hoping that they would see it and we could get the ball rolling from there. If they put themselves in my shoes
43
HELPING FAMILIES ENJOY FOOTBALL AT HOME The ‘homemade waste pipe goal’. Waste pipes, push-fit knuckle bends and some barrier fencing. It doesn’t seem like much, but sometimes it’s all you need to transform your garden into a proper footy pitch.
OFFICIAL TRADE & HARDWARE RETAIL PARTNER
44
S
wansea City AFC Community Trust have teamed up with Ospreys In The Community to officially launch the In The Squad project.
Backed by the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust, the project will see both organisations use the power of sport and their brands to engage with veterans and ex-service personnel of all ages across the community, with the aim of supporting their wellbeing and combating social isolation. Initially, we planned to deliver sport and fitness activities based around football and rugby – including walking football and wheelchair rugby – once a week at local venues. But due to the ongoing pandemic and current lockdown restrictions, we have decided to take the programme online via fortnightly “stand easy” sessions on Zoom. For the first of these hourly meetings, we were joined by Rob Govier – the Royal Navy’s head of Maritime communications and information systems training. Caroline Gwilym, health and wellbeing officer at the Trust, said: “We are delighted to be able to
deliver such a worthwhile community-based project specifically for veterans in the area. “Connection is so important for wellbeing – especially at this time – so we wanted to provide our veterans with an opportunity to do that with other people in an informal social setting. “There is plenty of evidence that physical activity supports mental health through improved selfesteem, reduced stress and improved mood. “When teamed with a sense of group belonging and the support of a social network, there are also positive impacts on depression, anxiety and overall wellbeing. “Everyone is welcome and we look forward to seeing, supporting and facilitating connections with many veterans over the coming weeks.” To register for these sessions, visit: www.orm.jotform.com/SwansTrust/InTheSquad For more information, please contact: caroline@scfccommunitytrust.co.uk
45
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SEASON 2020-21 FIXTURE
52
Match Statistics
Key
Goal =
Sub = 2 (number denotes player replaced)
Captain =
DATE
TEAM
Newport County (CC R2) A L 2-0
Sat, Sep 5, 3pm
Woodman
Routledge 3
Naughton
Rodon
Fulton
Bidwell 1
Grimes
Preston North End A W 0-1
Sat, Sep 12, 3pm
Woodman
Roberts
Cabango
Rodon
Guehi
Bidwell
Grimes
Birmingham City H D 0-0
Sat, Sep 19, 3pm
Woodman
Roberts
Cabango
Rodon
Guehi
Bidwell
Grimes
Waycombe Wanderers A W 0-2
Sat, Sep 26, 12.30pm
Woodman
Roberts
Cabango
Rodon
Guehi
Bidwell
Grimes
Millwall H W 2-1
Sat, Oct 3, 3pm
Benda
Roberts
Cabango
Rodon
Guehi
Bidwell
Grimes
Huddersfield Town H L 1-2
Sat, Oct 17, 3pm
Woodman
Roberts
Cabango
Naughton 3
Guehi
Bidwell
Grimes
Coventry City A D 1-1
Tue, Oct 20, 7.45pm
Woodman
Roberts
Cabango
Bennett
Guehi
Bidwell
Grimes
Bristol City A D 1-1
Sat, Oct 24, 3pm
Woodman
Roberts
Cabango
Bennett
Guehi
Bidwell
Grimes
Stoke City H W 2-0
Tue, Oct 27, 7.45pm
Woodman
Roberts
Naughton
Bennett 3
Guehi
Manning 1
Grimes
Blackburn Rovers H W 2-0
Sat, Oct 31, 3pm
Woodman
Roberts
Cabango
Naughton
Guehi
Bidwell
Smith
Brentford A D 1-1
Tue, Nov 3, 7pm
Woodman
Roberts
Naughton
Bennett
Guehi
Bidwell
Smith
Norwich City A L 1-0
Sat, Nov 7, 3pm
Woodman
Roberts
Naughton
Rotherham United H W 1-0
Sat, Nov 21, 3pm
Woodman
Roberts
Cabango
Sheffield Wednesday H D 1-1
Wed, Nov 25, 7.45pm
Woodman
Roberts
Cabango
Bennett
Naughton 2
Bidwell 4
Grimes
Nottingham Forest A W 0-1
Sun, Nov 29, 12pm
Woodman
Roberts
Naughton
Bennett
Guehi
Bidwell
Grimes Smith 5
1
Bennett
Guehi
Bidwell
Smith
Bennett
Naughton
Bidwell
Grimes
Middlesbrough A L 2-1
Wed, Dec 2, 7pm
Woodman
Roberts
Cabango 2
Bennett
Guehi
Manning
Luton Town H W 2-0
Sat, Dec 5, 3pm
Woodman
Roberts
Naughton
Cabango
Guehi 3
Bidwell
Grimes
A.F.C. Bournemouth H D 0-0
Tue, Dec 8, 7.45pm
Woodman
Roberts
Latibeaudiere
Cabango
Naughton
Bidwell
Grimes
Cardiff City A W 0-2
Sat, Dec 12, 12.30pm
Woodman
Roberts
Naughton
Bennett
Guehi
Bidwell
Grimes
Derby County A L 2-0
Wed, Dec 16, 5.30pm
Woodman
Roberts
Naughton 2
Bennett
Guehi
Bidwell 3
Grimes
Barnsley H W 2-0
Sat, Dec 19, 3pm
Woodman
Roberts
Cabango
Bennett
Guehi
Bidwell
Grimes
Queens Park Rangers A W 0-2
Sat, Dec 26, 3pm
Woodman
Roberts
Cabango
Bennett
Guehi
Bidwell
Grimes
Reading H D 0-0
Wed, Dec 30, 8pm
Woodman
Roberts
Cabango
Bennett
Guehi
Bidwell
Grimes
Watford H W 2-1
Sat, Jan 2, 3pm
Woodman
Roberts
Guehi
Cabango
Bidwell
Manning 1
Grimes
Stevenage A (FA R3) W 0-2
Sat, Jan 9, 3pm
Woodman
Garrick 4
Naughton
Cabango
Evans
Barnsley A W 0-2
Sat, Jan 16, 7.45pm
Woodman
Roberts
Naughton
Cabango
Nottingham Forest H (FA R4) W 5-1
Sat, Jan 23, 3pm
Woodman
Roberts 5
Latibeaudiere
Brentford H D 1-1
Weds, Jan 27, 7pm
Woodman
Roberts
Naughton
Rotherham United A W 1-3
Sat, Jan 30, 3pm
Woodman
Roberts
Norwich City H W 2-0
Fri, Feb 5, 8.15pm
Woodman
Manchester City H (FA R5) L 1-3
Wed, Feb 10, 5.30pm
Woodman
Sheffield Wednesday A
Sat, Feb 13, 3pm
Nottingham Forest H W 1-0
Wed, Feb 17, 7pm
Woodman
Roberts
Naughton 1
Bennett
Guehi
Bidwell
Grimes
Huddersfield Town A L 4-1
Sat, Feb 20, 3pm
Woodman
Roberts
Naughton 3
Bennett 1
Guehi
Bidwell 5
Grimes
Coventry City H
Wed, Feb 24, 7pm
Bristol City H
Sat, Feb 27, 3pm
Stoke City A
Wed, Mar 3, 8.15pm
Middlesbrough H
Sat, Mar 6, 3pm
Blackburn Rovers A
Tue, March 9, 6pm
Luton Town A
Sat, Mar 13, 12.15pm
A.F.C. Bournemouth A
Tues, Mar 16, 7.45pm
Cardiff City H
Sat, Mar 20, 5:30pm
Birmingham City A
Fri, Apr 2, 3pm
Preston North End H
Mon, Apr 5, 3pm
Millwall A
Sat, Apr 10, 3pm
Wycombe Wanderers H
Sat, Apr 17, 3pm
Queens Park Rangers H
Tues, Apr 20, 7.45pm
Reading A
Sat, Apr 24, 3pm
Derby County H
Sat, May 1, 3pm
Watford A
Sat, May 8, 3pm
1
3
Manning
Byers
Guehi
Bidwell
Grimes
Bennett
Guehi 4
Manning
Hourihane 3
Cabango
Guehi
Bidwell
Grimes
Cabango
Bennett
Guehi
Bidwell
Grimes
Roberts
Naughton
Bennett
Guehi
Bidwell
Grimes
Roberts 3
Latibeaudiere
Cabango
Guehi
Manning 4
Grimes
Booked =
Sent off =
Carabao Cup = CC
FA Cup = FA
Correct as of February 23, 2021
SUBSTITUTES Smith 2
Gibbs-White
Smith
Gibbs-White
Smith
Gibbs-White
Lowe 1
Smith
Gibbs-White 1
Lowe
Smith
Gibbs-White 2
Smith Smith
1
Lowe
Ayew
Benda, Rushesha, Evans, Williams, Dhanda 2, Peterson 3, Asoro 1
Lowe 2
Ayew
Benda, Naughton, Fulton 1, Dhanda, Routledge 2, Peterson, Cullen
Ayew
Benda, Naughton, Fulton, Dhanda, Routledge, Peterson, Cullen 1
Ayew
Benda, Naughton, Fulton 1, Dhanda, Routledge, Peterson, Cullen 2
Lowe 1
Ayew
Webb, Naughton, Fulton 2, Routledge, Garrick, Cullen, Gyokeres 1
Gyokeres 1
Lowe 2
Ayew
Benda, Evans, Fulton, Dhanda, Palmer 1, Garrick 3, Cullen 2
Gyokeres 1
Lowe 2
Ayew
Benda, Manning, Fulton 1, Dhanda, Palmer, Garrick, Cullen 2
Smith
Fulton
Lowe
Ayew
Benda, Naughton, Manning, Dhanda, Routledge, Cullen, Gyokeres 1
Fulton
Dhanda 2
Lowe
Ayew
Benda, Cabango 3, Bidwell 1, Smith, Palmer 2
Fulton
Dhanda
Lowe
Ayew
Benda, Bennett, Manning, Grimes, Routledge, Palmer 2, Gyokeres 1
Dhanda 2
Lowe 3
Ayew
Benda, Latibeaudiere, Manning, Grimes 1, Routledge, Palmer 2, Gyokeres 3
Palmer 3
Lowe
Ayew
Benda, Latibeaudiere, Manning, Grimes 1, Dhanda 3, Routledge, Gyokeres 2
Fulton
Dhanda 2
Lowe 3
Cullen 1
Benda, Latibeaudiere, Manning, Rushesha, Williams, Smith 3, Cooper, Routledge 1, Palmer 2
Smith
Dhanda
Lowe 3
Cullen 1
Benda, Latibeaudiere, Manning 4, Rushesha, Fulton, Cooper, Routledge 3, Palmer 2, Ayew 1
Smith
Fulton
Lowe 1
Ayew
Benda, Cabango, Manning, Dhanda, Routledge 1, Palmer, Garrick, Cullen, Gyokeres
Palmer 4
Lowe 3
Ayew
Benda, Naughton, Bidwell, Grimes 1 , Dhanda 4
Dhanda 2
Cullen 2
Ayew
Fulton 1 Fulton
Fulton
2
1
Smith Smith
Dhanda 2
Lowe 1
Smith
Fulton
Lowe
Smith 5
Fulton 1
Fulton
Dhanda
Fulton
Dhanda
Fulton Fulton Fulton 1
Routledge
Fulton
Smith
Dhanda
Grimes
Fulton
2
1
4
Ayew
, Cullen, Gyokeres
, Routledge 2, Garrick 5, Cullen, Gyokeres 3
Benda, Latibeaudiere 3, Manning, Fulton, Routledge, Palmer 2, Garrick, Lowe 1, Gyokeres 4 Benda, Evans, Manning, Fulton, Routledge, Palmer 2, Garrick, Cullen, Gyokeres 1
Ayew
Benda, Latibeaudiere, Cabango, Manning, Routledge 1, Palmer, Dhanda, Cullen, Gyokeres
Lowe 4
Ayew
Benda, Latibeaudiere, Cabango, Manning 3, Garrick 4, Palmer 3, Dhanda 1, Cullen 5, Gyokeres
Lowe
Ayew
Benda, Latibeaudiere, Manning, Smith, Routledge, Palmer, Cooper, Cullen, Gyokeres
Lowe
Ayew
Benda, Latibeaudiere, Manning, Smith 1, Routledge, Palmer, Garrick, Cullen, Gyokeres
Smith 2
Lowe 3
Ayew
Benda, Latibeaudiere 1, Manning, Routledge, Palmer 2, Dhanda, Cooper, Garrick, Gyokeres 3
Smith
Lowe
Ayew
Benda, Evans, Routledge, Palmer, Dhanda, Gibbs-White 1, Cooper, Garrick, Gyokeres
Dhanda
Gyokeres
Webb, Guehi, Bidwell 3, Grimes, Smith 1, Williams, Cooper 4, Cullen 2, Lowe
1
2
1
Lowe
Ayew
Hamer, Latibeaudiere, Manning, Routledge, Byers, Dhanda, Cooper, Garrick, Cullen
Routledge 1
Cullen
Webb, Cabango, Naughton, Bidwell 4, Fulton 2, Cooper 3
Hourihane
Lowe 1
Ayew
Hamer, Bennett, Latibeaudiere, Manning 1, Williams, Dhanda, Cooper, Garrick, Morris
Dhanda 1
Hourihane
Lowe 2
Ayew
Hamer, Latibeaudiere, Evans, Manning, Williams, Fulton 1
Fulton
Hourihane
Lowe 1
Ayew
Hamer, Latibeaudiere, Cabango, Manning, Freeman, Dhanda, Cooper, Morris 1, Whittaker.
Fulton
Dhanda
5
Lowe 1
Morris 2
Webb, Naughton, Freeman 3, Bennett, Bidwell 4, Hourihane 5, Arriola 1, Whittaker 2
Fulton
Hourihane 3
Lowe 2
Ayew
Hamer, Cabango, Latibeaudiere, Manning, Smith 3, Dhanda, Arriola 2, Morris 1, Whittaker.
Fulton 4
Hourihane
Lowe 1
Ayew
Hamer, Cabango 1, Latibeaudiere, Manning 5, Smith, Dhanda 4, Arriola, Morris 2, Whittaker 3.
2
, Garrick 5, Ayew, Lowe 1
, Cooper, Garrick, Morris 2
.
53
CHAMPIONSHIP TABLE 20-21 POS TEAM
P
*Sheffield Wednesday deducted 6 points.
W D L
F
GD PTS
1
Norwich City
31
19
7
5
42
24
18
64
2
Brentford
31
16
9
6
56
34
22
57
3
Watford
31
16
9
6
40
21
19
57
4
Swansea City
29
16
8
5
37
19
18
56
5
Reading
31
15
6
10
44
36
8
51
6
Bournemouth
31
13
10
8
45
30
15
49
7
Cardiff City
31
13
7
11
46
33
13
46
8
Middlesbrough
31
13
7
11
36
31
5
46
9
Stoke City
31
11
12
8
37
33
4
45
10
Barnsley
30
13
6
11
34
35
-1
45
11
Millwall
31
9
15
7
30
27
3
42
12
Blackburn Rovers
30
11
6
13
43
34
9
39
13
Queens Park Rangers
29
10
9
10
30
34
-4
39
14
Preston North End
31
12
3
16
34
42
-8
39
15
Bristol City
31
12
3
16
29
42
-13
39
16
Luton Town
30
10
7
13
23
34
-11
37
17
Nottingham Forest
31
9
9
13
26
31
-5
36
18
Huddersfield Town
31
10
6
15
38
45
-7
36
19
Derby County
30
9
7
14
22
32
-10
34
20
Coventry City
31
8
10
13
29
42
-13
34
21
Birmingham City
31
7
10
14
22
37
-15
31
22
Rotherham United
29
8
5
16
33
40
-7
29
23
Sheffield Wednesday*
30
9
7
14
21
32
-11
28
24
Wycombe Wanderers
30
4
8
18
22
51
-29
20
B
BRISTOL CITY (H)
Saturday, Feb 27, 3pm
STOKE CITY (A)
Wednesday, Mar 3, 8.15pm
MIDDLESBROUGH (H)
Saturday, Mar 6, 3pm
BLACKBURN ROVERS (A) Tuesday, Mar 9, 6pm
LUTON TOWN (A)
Saturday, Mar 13, 12.15pm
Correct as of February 23, 2021
NEXT UP AT HOME - BRISTOL CITY ristol City are in their sixth season back in the second tier having won the League One title in 2015.
They were in the play-off hunt last term but fell away to an eventual 12th-place finish as Lee Johnson left his post as manager.
54
A
UPCOMING FIXTURES
The Robins came closest to sealing promotion to the Premier League in 2008, losing 1-0 to Hull City in the Championship play-off final.
21
They almost returned to Wembley 10 years later after beating Manchester United, Crystal Palace and Stoke on the way to reaching the League Cup semi-finals, before narrowly succumbing to eventual winners Manchester City.
SWANS
28 BRISTOL CITY
21 DRAWS 70 PAST MEETINGS
55
SQUAD LIST V
HEAD COACH: STEVE COOPER Freddie Woodman Ryan Bennett Ryan Manning Marc Guéhi Jay Fulton Korey Smith Matt Grimes Jamal Lowe André Ayew Jordan Morris Steven Benda Conor Hourihane Wayne Routledge Morgan Whittaker Ben Hamer Paul Arriola Liam Cullen Yan Dhanda Joel Latibeaudiere Connor Roberts Jake Bidwell Kyle Naughton Tivonge Rushesha Ollie Cooper Kieron Freeman Brandon Cooper Daniel Williams Lewis Webb Ben Cabango
1 2 3 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 13 14 15 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 26 30 31 34 36 37 42 44
HEAD COACH: MARK ROBINS 1 2 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 19 20 21 23 24 25 26 29 30 38
Marko Marosi Leo Østigard Michael Rose Kyle McFadzean Liam Kelly Jodi Jones Jamie Allen Maxime Biamou Wesley Jobello Callum O’Hare Viktor Gyökeres Ben Wilson Ben Sheaf Dominic Hyam Josh Pask Tyler Walker Amadou Bakayoko Sam McCallum Fakaty Dabo Matt Godden Matty James Jordan Shipley Julien Dacosta Fabio Tavares Gustavo Hamer
MATCH OFFICIALS REFEREE: ANDY WOOLMER ASSISTANT REFEREES: LEE VENAMORE AND NICK GREENHALGH FOURTH OFFICIAL: JOHN BUSBY