Q&A with Matt Grimes

“I was training, not playing, going home and sleeping on the sofa because because I was living on my own as I wasn’t with my girlfriend at the time.

“I was just in a lull of training and not playing, running on the weekends and it impacted my mental health so much.

“I was stepping on the pitch, not feeling confident at all and I was thinking should I even be here? Should I be at a Premier League team? What am I going to do after this season because it has gone so badly?

“That, coupled with thousands of people outside of football telling me I how bad I was, calling me all sorts of ridiculous things.

“To bounce back from it, without sounding cynical, I feel like alot of people need it to bounce back and to build character, not that I wish people to go through that.

“It’s so important, in this day and age, especially young players because they are subject to such a big scale of people watching and having their opinions.

“Obviously everybody is entitled to their opinions, but you just have to know what the right ones are to take in.

“Looking back now, it was a really good test for me if you like.

“At Leeds, because I wasn’t playing, and when I was playing, I was playing poorly and then you get all the outside noise of you're not good enough. “But because you aren’t confident in yourself you start to believe that.

“It was important for me to go to Northampton to get my confidence back. I wasn’t thinking about anyone else. I just needed to play games.

“I went there, played games and unfortunately we got relegated, but for myself I scored a few goals and fell back in love with football really.”

Graham Potter came in as manager the following season. You started off as left-back with Martin Olsson away at the World Cup, but were soon back in midfield and haven’t looked back.

“I am a midfielder there's no doubt about that. I am no left-back, but I just wanted to be involved and I almost saw it as a way in.

“I thought if I could do well at left-back, the manager will then trust me. Obviously, I presumed he knew (Graham Potter) I was a central midfielder, so I would end up there at some point.

“As long as I was playing that was the most important thing.

“He gave me my opportunity. I personally didn’t think that I would play for Swansea. I only played five games, so I was thinking I was going to move on. I ended up playing 50 games that season under him.

“He believed in me, gave me an opportunity, and I owe alot to him for reviving my Swansea career. He was very influential.”

The FA Cup quarter-final against Manchester City was probably the most memorable game of that season, and you played centre-back and scored a penalty.

“We played West Brom on the Wednesday before and Bersant (Celina) took a penalty, tried to dink it, and slipped. Sorry Bers, I didn’t want to remind you!

“Billy Reid came up to me before the City game and asked if I wanted to take penalties.

“I thought ‘go on then’, thinking we wouldn’t get a penalty and as Connor (Roberts) took a touch, got brought down and was appealing to the ref I suddenly thought, ‘I’m on penalties’.

“I have said in interviews before, I was so confident that season, the same as I have felt this season, where I was just never going to miss.

“In terms of playing in defence, Graham Potter told me on the Thursday. He told me ‘I think the centre-half needs to step out to their midfielder and that needs to be you’.

“It was an absolute stroke of genius and we played really well. Anything he said to me that year I would have done. I believed in him that much I would have done anything.

“If he told me to stick the gloves on and play in goal, I would have.”

The following season saw you get your first taste of the south Wales derby, and it was a successful one. How much do you enjoy those games? “As a player, if you do just look at it as a game, it is just that. But the amount of passion and pride that the fans have in the city is remarkable. These kinds of games are purely for the fans.

“To give people such joy and elation of beating the team from just down the road, where it means so much, I think is worth going that extra yard and making sure that everything is done properly.

“These games have more of an edge to them and that comes from just wanting to do the best for our people. We want them to have the bragging rights, and we have done for the last couple.”

That season you became club captain. How much of an honour is it to lead this club and how did it come about?

“It was before the pre-season game against Exeter. We were coming off the training pitch and he (Steve Cooper) asked me if I wanted to be captain just for one game.

“I was thinking, I don’t want to be captain just for one game and not be captain again, so I didn’t know how to take it.

“I said, ‘I don’t mind’, but then he said he was thinking about making me captain full-time.

“We played that game (versus Exeter) and there was another couple where Wayne (Routledge) and Nath (Dyer) took the armband.

“The week leading up to the season, he sat me down and told me I was being made captain. Obviously, I was honoured. There are no other words for it, and it is still an honour every time I walk out with the lads.”

You led the club to the play-offs in consecutive seasons, and obviously suffered the heartache of defeat at Wembley. Can you put into words that experience?

“I had been to Wembley a couple of times to watch Exeter in playoff finals, the first time Gilly (Matt Gill) got sent off.

“The atmosphere as a kid going to such an iconic ground was great, so I always wanted to tick that box in my playing career.

“I was gutted and when the final whistle went all of their lot (Brentford) were celebrating. I remember thinking ‘just get me out of here’, but I went and clapped our fans because they were sensational as always.

“I turned around and saw Wayne. I knew that he done his knee in and he was likely to be retiring and that just sent me.

“I don’t think I stopped crying for about three days. It was a feeling like no other. I could not stop.

“It was me and Jamal (Lowe). He was always happy that nobody ever got a photo of him crying and he was bawling his eyes out.

“Honestly, I couldn’t stop. The gaffer and Marshy came in and were saying how proud they were but I couldn’t stop.

“I went and laid on the physio bed and I couldn’t stop. For the next three days, I was fine but then if I thought about, I just started crying.” Onto this season. We’ve seen you commit your future to the club under Russell Martin, which is a sign of how much you are enjoying working with him and his style of play?

“He wants us to play, behave and mould us as such a tight group. I think you can see how we have developed and for me I see a lot of similarities between this season and the year we spent under Graham (Potter).

“We are all loving what he is making us do, and he says he is loving standing on the side-lines watching us. If you are him, you want to enjoy watching what we do.

“If we dedicate ourselves and work as hard as we do to implement that, then there’s no reason we cannot have a successful future.”

Following the conclusion of our series of ‘History Makers’ features recalling Swansea City’s historic 1980-81 season, club historian Gwyn Rees profiles one of the stand-out stars of that era; John Mahoney.

Cardiff born but brought up in the Manchester area where his father played rugby league for Oldham, John Mahoney signed his first professional contract for Crewe Alexandra in 1966.

After just 18 appearances his potential was spotted by First Division Stoke City, and in March 1967 he moved to the Potteries.

Mahoney’s game developed and he became an instantly recognisable busy midfielder. He was adept at winning the ball and starting off many an attacking situation, and always made himself available to receive a ball whether in defensive or attacking position.

His bravery on the ball made him the type of player that is invaluable to any team.

Just weeks after joining Stoke he made his full Wales international debut against England at Ninnian Park, and though the game ended in a 3-0 defeat for his country, this was just the beginning of a 15-year year association with the national side that saw the popular player win 51 caps.

In 1972 John came on as a substitute at Wembley in the League Cup final win over Chelsea, but just five years later Stoke were relegated, and the player was sold to Middlesborough in a deal worth £90,000. His two seasons on Teesside saw the club finish in midtable, but when the chance to move back to South Wales came along in 1979 - playing for his cousin John Toshack and joining up with many of his international team-mates at the Vetch Field - the midfielder did not need a second invitation.

Along with his experience on the pitch, Mahoney’s all-action style was vital to the Swans promotion push during the 1980-81 season. When the team hit a slump halfway through the season, it was John's experience on the pitch that helped steady the ship and put the promotion chase back on track.

The end of an historic season saw the club reach the First Division for the first time in its history with a last day win at Preston North End, but this final-day victory was bittersweet for the player, who had to sit out the game after not being selected in the XI that took the pitch.

However, he did win a Welsh Cup winners’ medal just weeks later after a two-legged win over Hereford United.

The new season saw the club in uncharted waters competing for the first time in English football's top division, and being involved in five different competitions throughout the season.

Mahoney’s experience at the top level proved invaluable during a record-breaking season that saw the club finish sixth after being right in the thick of the title race.

The well-documented financial crisis at the club saw many

players leave in the years following that campaign, but John's career ended while still with the Swans on Saint David's Day in 1983.

In a game against Brighton and Hove Albion, the player broke his ankle leaving him with a permanent limp and causing his retirement from professional football.

After leaving the Swans he became player manager at Bangor City, taking them into the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1985-86, where they defeated Norwegian side Fredrikstad F.K., before putting up a brave show losing to Atletico Madrid.

After leaving Bangor he managed at Newport County for a brief spell, before returning for an less successful second stint at Bangor.

His final move was to become coach at Carmarthen Town, before concentrating his knowledge around the amateur clubs in the Llanelli area, where his know-how and expertise are gratefully received.

Although John represented his country with distinction, he wasn't the only member of the Mahoney family with this claim to fame, as two of his daughters followed in their father’s footsteps by featuring for Wales as netball internationals.