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Five Things We Learned: Swindon 3-0 Rochdale
After enduring a torrid start to the season, and with manger Luke Williams’ job on the line, Tuesday evening gave Swindon Town the perfect opportunity to silence their critics. A 3-0 victory over lofty Rochdale saw Town rise to 17th in the table, and TotalSport’s Ryan Walker gives his analysis on five things we learnt from the fixture.
1) Yaser Kasim should not start
After being ruled out of the fixture through suspension, Tuesday’s match gave youngster Tom Smith a rare chance to impress manager Williams, and he did not let him down.
While Kasim has appeared bored, lacklustre, and at times uninterested, 18-year-old Smith was a breath of fresh air in a side that so far this season has lacked energy.
Smith was chasing down every ball, making intelligent passes, and even doing his defensive duties well, which is something Kasim fails to do. Was it a coincidence that Smith’s start coincided with Town’s best performance of the Season? Drop Kasim and start Smith.
2) Defence is Conor Thomas' best position
With defensive injuries a plenty for Swindon, summer signing Conor Thomas has found himself regularly playing as one of three centre backs within Williams’ favoured 3-5-2 formation. But is it Thomas’s best position?
When deplyed in midfield, Thomas uses his strength well to win the ball back and retain possession, but in defence his tactical awareness and ability to defend well from set-pieces is fantastic. You only have to look at the lack of chances Rochdale created to see the formidable defensive partnership that has started to form between the ex-Coventry player and Town captain Nathan Thompson, and long may it continue.
3) Luke Williams has delayed his departure
After losing 1-0 at home to Bolton Wanderers in their last home outing, Luke Williams found his job on the line after having a meeting with chairman Lee Power.
With Swindon too frequently playing a boring possession-based style of football, Williams has regularly found himself on the receiving end of deserved criticism.
But, with his job under threat the 35-year-old changed his tactics which saw Swindon play on the front foot and willing to take shots. It may not have saved his position but Tuesday’s victory will certainly go a long way to helping his cause.
4) Swindon still need a leader
Although the 3-0 win over Rochdale was a big boost for Swindon Town, we cannot get carried away just yet.
Many positives can be taken from the match but like always there are also a few negatives, and most importantly is the recurring theme of a lack of leadership on the pitch.
A solid performance for Nathan Thompson epitomised by his goal and the side’s clean sheet was great, however Thompson’s lack of leadership was once again visible.
A shaky start to the second half for Swindon, in which they conceded a penalty, needed a cool and collected head from the captain; however he looked just as shaken as the rest of the players in red. When calmness is needed Thompson is not the man for the job, but who could be his replacement?
5) Swindon cannot afford another slump
Tuesday night's victory saw Swindon rise to 17th in the table on 16 points, and with Walsall to play at the weekend Town fans will be hoping to see their side progress further up the League One ladder .
However, the most crucial thing is not the result, it is the fact that Williams and his backroom staff must not revert to their old style of play.
Tuesday night saw Swindon play more ferociously and with better interchangeable passing, but the easy thing now for Williams would be to stick to his old ways of playing comfortable possession-based football which fails to entertain. Keep attacking and the results will come.
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