PREVIEW | Swindon Town v Forest Green Rovers

Swindon Town welcome local rivals Forest Green Rovers to the County Ground tomorrow evening in their midweek rearranged League Two fixture. Total Sport Swindon’s Ryan Walker previews the stats, facts, and everything in between ahead of the big match.

Just 29 miles separate the two stadiums, however, a different story in the League standings see’s Forest Green Rovers and Swindon Town separated by six places and eight points with Rovers currently occupying 6th spot in the league and Swindon languishing in mid-table. 

A fantastic 3-2 weekend win over playoff hopefuls MK Dons saw Swindon continue their impressive 100% away record in 2019 as Robins manager Richie Wellens and his squad hunt down the promotion-chasing pack. 

But with Swindon still without a home win this year, two losses and a draw, tomorrow’s match presents Town with the perfect opportunity to continue their good run of form in front of a home crowd. 

In contrast to Swindon, Forest Green Rovers enter the fray low on confidence after recent struggles see the team without a win in their last two fixtures, suffering a 2-1 home loss against bottom of the table Notts County in their latest game. 

But despite mixed form of late, only six losses all season highlight just how far the former non-league side has come under former Swindon manager Mark Cooper since he took over managerial duties in 2016.  

Unbeaten in league fixtures against Forest Green Rovers with Swindon having won twice and drawn once since the Nailsworth based clubs promotion from the National League in 16/17, gives Town fans encouragement heading into the derby encounter. 

But with the travelling side firmly placed for a top-seven finish, Swindon Town will be wary of the threat posed by the local opposition. 

Michael Doughty’s brilliant weekend brace saw the playmaker move on to eleven goals for the season, but with no other current Swindon player having found the net more than three times this season, Richie Wellens is faced with a serious problem to fix as his goal-short strikeforce go up against the league second best statistical defence with Forest Green Rovers having conceded just 30 times all season. 

But with new signing Theo Robinson set to make his home debut, Wellens will be hoping that the former Championship striker can provide Swindon with the answers in front of goal tomorrow night. 

At the other end of the pitch, Town’s defence will need to be at their best to keep out Christian Doidge and Reuben Reid with the pair both on seven goals for the season. And with the visitors averaging over 11 shots each match, Swindon goalkeeper Lawrence Vigouroux looks set for a busy evening between the sticks.   

Team news for the two sides sees Swindon still without Captain Olly Lancashire who remains sidelined by injury, whilst Rovers manager Mark Cooper revealed he is set to be without goalkeeper James Montgomery following the player's horror injury against Mansfield Town in which the player lost several teeth. 

As the pressure ramps up with the end of the season drawing ever nearer, Swindon Town and Forest Green Rovers will be expecting to go one better than the 1-1 draw they played out earlier in the season, with Swindon aiming for their first home win of 2019. 

Prediction: 2-1