Swindon Town's New Manager

I wrote to the Swindon Advertiser detailing who should be the next Swindon Town Manager, but, if they fail to print my email, here it is in full. I think you may be surprised as to who I think would be the ideal replacement for Mark Cooper (who did an excellent job for the club, by the way):


Dear Sir,

The Ides of March 1969 saw me three months short of my fourth birthday, so I never went to Wembley that auspicious day nor do I remember watching the match on the television. However, playing football on Buckhurst Field some years later with boys old enough to have been there and listened to their stories of the glorious League Cup victors, I dreamed of seeing my hometown club play on the hallowed turf at least once in my lifetime. I didn’t make it for the Millwall game, nor last season for the capitulation against Preston North End, but I was there when Swindon Town FC were worthy victors over Sunderland AFC, when Chalky White “won” the penalty that saw the Robins eventually see off Leicester City and the loss to Chesterfield in the Johnstones Paint Trophy Final. My three visits to the National Stadium convinced me that the much maligned Wiltshire town that is the place of my birth and the town I have returned to more than once, and call home, deserves better than League 1 football.

Last season should have seen the team achieve promotion, but all concerned froze when it mattered most. That isn’t to say that I believe Mark Cooper to be a bad manager -  far from it. Working within a limited budget, he cobbled together a team worthy of treading onto the Wembley pitch and the day should have seen glory returned down the M4 to Swindon. Real life doesn’t always go with the script and all the hard work of the previous two years put in by the whole Swindon Town team, backroom staff included, unravelled at the feet of one Jermaine Beckford. An exodus followed and Mark Cooper was faced again with building a team from scratch. The previous two seasons gave a false sense of security and more of the same was expected on Saturday 8^th August 2015 once the first ball was kicked against Bradford City at the County Ground to see in the new Football League season. The 4 – 1 win seemed to indicate that all was well, but, only three months into the season, the club is facing the prospect of a relegation battle, the manager has gone and the injury list is expanding daily.

The ideal replacement is out there in the wider world, waiting to be recruited, but the one person I do not want to see at the helm is Steve Evans. Why? Because he has never come across as being an affable person and would probably only use the club as a stepping stone to get somewhere “higher”.  However, the qualities needed by the next incumbent of the Swindon Town hot seat have been shown by some of his/her predecessors. The person given the managerial role at the County Ground should exhibit the following:

1.       The PASSION of Paolo Di Canio

2.       The SKILLS of Glenn Hoddle

3.       The TACTICAL nous of Osvaldo Ardiles

4.       The TENACITY of Lou Macari

5.       The CHARM of Danny Williams

6.       The STAYING POWER of Sam Allen

I hinted above that the next manager could come from any sphere of the football community so I am going to propose someone who has international  managerial experience at the top level, but is not featured in any of the bookies lists.

How about Hope Powell?

She has played at international level and she has taken the women’s England team to the quarter finals of the Women’s World Cup, and finished her England role with an overall international win record of over 52%. I believe that the time for her to venture into Football League management is right and Swindon Town would be the team to allow her to show the footballing world her credentials. We’ve given the opportunity before to inexperienced players to make their mark in football management, so why not allow an experienced person in the women’s game the chance to show what she can do in the men’s one?

Thank you for taking the time to read this email and I hope you will print it in full.

Yours faithfully,

Stuart Rivers

There you go. As the Yanks would say, "totally out of left field".

Your views...

Charlie Austin England Call Up

The announcement today of the England Squad to play against Slovenia and the Republic of Ireland in the Euro 2016 qualifier, and friendly international, in June has given vindication to my call for Charlie Austin to represent his country. I first called for his inclusion into the senior team in November 2012 when, at that time, he was the highest scoring striker in Europe (Sporting Life & Zlatan Ibrahimovic). Since then, when he was playing for Burnley FC having been first given the chance to ply his trade as a professional footballer by Swindon Town, he has proved his worth in the Premier League playing for Queens Park Rangers. Perhaps the almost three years that has passed since my call for him to receive his first cap has allowed him to mature both physically and mentally and he will be better equipped to seize the chance that he has been given? However, I believe that the debacle that was the England performance in the World Cup 2014 may have been avoided if a natural goalscorer like Austin had been included in the squad.

It is heartening to see that a player nurtured by Swindon Town has now been given the opportunity to achieve the honour of representing his country. Nonetheless, it is a shame that those responsible for choosing who is included in the squad rarely, if ever, look further than the Premier League for those they deem good enough to play for England. As a Swindon Town fan, I believe the club should take pride in being involved in the development of someone who may prove to be the prolific goalscorer the England team has been sorely missing. 

Two other new inclusions to the England squad have been selected from teams towards the bottom end of the Premier League. One is Jamie Vardy (Leicester City) and the other is Tom Heaton (Burnley FC). Their inclusion, along with that of Charlie Austin, is due to the fact that Roy Hodgson's first choices are unavailable as they are due to play in the England U21 team in the Euro U21 2015 Finals in the Czech Republic this summer. I hope that they also seize the opportunity to shine and, therefore, pave the way for other decent players from less fashionable clubs to represent their country.

Tom Heaton

As an end note, Swindon Town could tenuously claim to have helped in Tom Heaton's development as he played on loan for the club in the 2005/2006 season. His parent club was Manchester United and he played in a total of 19 games for the Robins. The other member of the full England squad who has links to Swindon Town is James Milner who played for the club 6 times in the 2003/2004 season, scoring 2 goals in his time at the County Ground. 

Charlie Austin for England

Now, I want to state quite clearly from the outset that I am not related to Charlie Austin. He once played for Swindon Town and I am a Swindon Town fan; that's as far or close as our relationship goes. However, prior to signing for Swindon Town, he used to score goals seemingly at will with an incredible 1.12 goal per game ratio (64 goals in 57 appearances) for Poole Town in the Premier Division of the Wessex League. He signed for Swindon Town, went on to play for Burnley FC and then made it to the Premier League with Queens Park Rangers. At the time of writing, his current all time goal average (including all competitions for his non-league, Football League and Premier League clubs) stands at 0.63 from 204 goals in 324 appearances. Again, at the time of writing, he is the highest English scorer in the Premier League with 5 goals (see Addendum below for a correction to this statement)


Almost exactly two years ago, I wrote  blogposts on his exploits when he was playing for Burnley FC (Sporting Life & Zlatan Ibrahimovic) and was the leading goalscorer in Europe. He broke the Lancashire club's record for being the quickest player to score 20 goals in a season and finished his time with the Clarets on a goal average of 0.50. He is now playing for Queens Park Rangers and his goal per game ratio with the R's currently stands at an all time 0.54 with a score of 0.56 for the season so far.

The point of my quoting the statistics above is to highlight the goalscoring prowess of Charlie Austin. His most recent goal for QPR (see video), a cheeky backheel into the net against Chelsea, is indicative of a natural born striker and now that he is plying his trade in the English Premier League, he must surely be in the running for an England call up. To back up this statement, I've taken the liberty of analysing the goal per game ratio statistics of the current strikers in the England senior squad (and Daniel Sturridge) versus that of Charlie Austin. All figures are taken from www.soccerbase.com and only includes the players' statistics for teams for which they have played in the Football League and Premier League. The results are detailed in the table below:

Goal per Game Ratio for England Strikers

The table shows that, of all the current and potential England Senior Squad Strikers, his goal to game ratio is by far the best for all games played in the Football League and Premier League. If England are to have any chance of progressing to a major final in forthcoming tournaments, starting with Euro 2016, a natural goalscorer playing in a striker's role for England is a must. The statistics above speak for themselves - Roy Hodgson, when are you going to give Charlie Austin the England call up he deserves?

Addendum

I have an apology to make to the West Bromwich Albion player, Saido Berahino. He is currently the top scoring Englishman in the Premier League with 7 goals from 10 games, not Charlie Austin. I have to confess, following the fortunes of the teams in the lower reaches of the English football pyramid, I didn't realise that Saido Berahino had represented England at different levels (U16 to U21) having assumed that he would have represented his native Burundi. I now realise my folly and, with a strike rate of 0.62 (8 goals and 13 appearances) so far this season for WBA, perhaps he could be the perfect partner for Charlie Austin up front for England? His overall strike rate for WBA is 0.35 (17 goals and 49 appearances) with an all time career strike rate of 0.37 (29 goals and 79 appearances), at the age of 21, he can only develop...for better or worse, only time will tell. 

Argentina 0 Swindon Town 1

The 2013 - 2014 season is drawing to a close, with the play offs and final games of the Premier League season only to be played to decide the last promotion places and the champion of the top league in England. Players may already be off on their holidays or have to wait pending their team's success or not in the aforementioned games, but the managers, boards and chairmen of the clubs up and down the country are already deciding on playing budgets and pre-season friendlies. Whilst the poorer clubs in the football league set-up consider late summer games against near neighbours, the wealthier clubs in the football pyramid jet off to foreign destinations for more lucrative matches against the native clubs in countries where the sun shines longer and hotter than in dear old Blighty. 

The World Cup in Brazil is also on its way and this tournament may well bring back memories to players and fans alike of summer tours of years gone by. Here, for a fortnight or so, the dreary, rainy and windswept terracing of home was swapped for the blue skies and palm trees of an exotic corner of the world under which a relaxing cocktail is supped as your heroes build up their stamina playing the local select eleven. For teams like Swindon Town, such tours are not new, with recent pre-seasons spent in Portugal, Italy and Austria, but the club has ventured further afield. 

The Southern League in 1910 - 1911 saw new Division 1 Champions as Swindon Town beat

the likes of West Ham United, Queens Park Rangers  and New Brompton (now Gillingham FC) to win the title with 53 points; Northampton Town were runners-up with 48 points. The club also won the Southern Charity Cup, a knockout competition competed for by members of the Southern League. After a 0 - 0 stalemate, Swindon Town beat Brighton & Hove Albion 1 - 0 in the replay played at Craven Cottage, the home of Fulham FC. The team at that time featured Swindon's only player to be capped at senior level for England, Harold Fleming, although he and other first team regulars were left out of the side for the final. The club was on the up and the following season saw the team lose 8 - 4 to Manchester United in the Charity Shield in a match played at Stamford Bridge, the home of Chelsea FC. Swindon Town also had success in the FA Cup, reaching semi-final. After a match which also saw a replay, the opponents, Barnsley, ran out 1 - 0 winners at Meadow Lane, the home of Notts County FC. 

Preparation for season 1912 - 1913 included an ambitious pre-season tour of Uruguay and Argentina. Legendary manager, Sam Allen, took his team to South America in an age when the only mode of transport for such a journey was by sea. Six weeks after the Titanic disaster, the club embarked on the long voyage to the hotbed of Latin American football. 

Alexander Watson Hutton
The "Father" of Argentinian Football

The tour kicked off on 16th June with a drawn match (2 - 2) versus Combinado Norte, a representative team from sides from Northern Buenos Aires. The thing to note about many of the Argentinian teams of the time was that they were formed by British immigrants to the country and. at this time, all Argentinian teams were amateur with a professional league only being introduced in 1931. Indeed, the striker for the Combinado Norte team and for other teams that Swindon Town played against during the tour, including the representative Argentinian national side, Argentinos, was Arnold Watson Hutton, the son of Alexander Watson Hutton, a Scotsman who emigrated to Argentina in 1882. He was a teacher and, after the first tentative steps in forming a football league in Argentina failed after one season in 1891, on 21st February 1893, Alexander Watson Hutton restarted the Argentine Association Football League which was to be the first officially recognised league outside of the British Isles.

When the teamsheets of the opposing teams are analysed, the British connection with the birth of

Arnold Watson Hutton

football in South America is apparent. Surnames such as Brown, Wilson and Hayes highlight the British roots of those players contesting 90 minutes of football against Swindon Town at that time. Even so, the matches included in the tour was against representative sides from the cream of Uruguayan and Argentinian football and would have proved a stern test for the Southern League side. In all, Swindon Town played eight games during the tour, including against a representative side from Uruguay, representative sides from the various Argentinian leagues, Club Atlético Estudiantes the prestigious Argentinian football club of Buenos Aires, as well as a final game against the de facto Argentinian National side, Argentinos.

Argentinos - 1912

The final match was played in Buenos Aires on 9th July 1912 against Agentinos. The score at half time was 0 - 1 to Swindon Town, Bob Jefferson the scorer. The second half saw no more goals and the team from Wiltshire finished the tour with a win against the best team in Agentina. Unbeaten Swindon Town's record for the tour was:

Played 8, Won 6, Drawn 2, Lost 0

Goals: For 21 Against 6

Scorers: Bown 12, Burkinshaw 3, Jefferson 2, Lamb 2, Batty 1, McCulloch 1

Games Played:

16.06.1912 (Buenos Aires) Combinado Norte 2 Swindon Town 2

22.06.1912 (Buenos Aires) San Isidro 1 Swindon Town 4

23.06.1912 (Buenos Aires) Combinado Sud 0 Swindon Town 2

29.06.1912 (Rosario) Liga Rosarina 1 Swindon Town 3

30.06.1912 (Buenos Aires) Liga Argentina 2  Swindon Town 2

04.07.1912 (Montevideo) Liga Uruguaya 0 Swindon Town 3

09.07.1912 (Buenos Aires) Argentinos 0 Swindon Town 1

Swindon Town Squad 1912 - 1913

The tour was a huge success and it boded well for Swindon Town's future. There was another Southern League Division 1 championship winning season in 1913 - 1914 and, although there was a season played in 1914 - 1915, the First World War interrupted the club's momentum. There was no further success until the promotion winning side of 1962 - 1963 when Swindon Town achieved promotion from League Division 3.

Mark Cooper's Swindon Town

Mark Cooper
Swindon Town's Manager

After the semi-final play-off defeat to Brentford, despite Aden Flint's superb equaliser (Aden Flint's Superb Equaliser), and with Kevin MacDonald deciding to quit his job as Swindon Town Manager for personal reasons, the whole sorry mess that unravelled at SN1 after Paolo Di Canio's tenure seemed to be coming to its inevitable conclusion. With the hysteria that surrounded the Italian and the refusal on most Swindon Town fans' part to see anything wrong with the management of the club so long as the team were winning on the pitch, and I include myself as one of those swept along by the Di Canio Circus (hindsight - a wonderful commodity with which to analyse past events), there was a sense of incredulity that Swindon Town could find itself in the position of having new owners and a caretaker manager at the helm at the start of the new season. In these rural parts of the country, the West Country instinct (we're Moonrakers after all) to be wary of the strange-sounding outsiders from down the M4 (Londoners) came to the fore when Jed McCrory, armed with the accent and vernacular of a barrow boy, headed up the consortium that saved the foremost team in Wiltshire from sliding into the administration mire that could have had fatal repercussions for professional football in Swindon.

Jed McCrory
Swindon Town Chairman

For his part Jed McCrory has proved his mettle and the improvements around the club, from the bricks and mortar projects in and around the stadium, to the improvements in purchasing online tickets, the matchday hospitality, etc. has shown that the Chairman is holding up his end in the bargain of his ambition for Swindon Town Football Club to be a truly sustainable business and community leader.


When, at the start of the current season, the club was left managerless, the quiet spoken and unassuming Mark Cooper took over the reins. The team that had almost achieved another Wembley visit had been dismantled and a team of youngsters, some homegrown, some borrowed from other clubs, and some signed at short notice were assembled to take on the rest of League 1. For a number of Swindon Town fans, their distrust of Mr. McCrory and the rest of the new board still to the fore, believed that relegation was on the cards and that the only way to avert such a disastrous end to the season was to appoint a "name", someone who had had extensive experience in football management and who could steer the Swindon ship on a course away from the rocks onto which it seemed to be heading. However, after a handful of games under his belt, Mark Cooper was awarded the role of Swindon Town Manager on a permanent basis. I would like to put on record that I supported his appointment. He had worked with Kevin MacDonald for the few months leading up to the end of last season and he knew the players that were left to him for the start of the new season. From these foundations, in my mind, the club was better off with Cooper in charge, as he could gently build on the work that had already been put into moulding a team for the assault on League 1 promotion. One question on the lips of all Swindon Town fans was what sort of football would be played by such young players, many of whom are short in stature?

Bert Head

"Bert's Babes"

Having experienced first hand the football played by the Ossie Ardiles and Glenn Hoddle Swindon Town teams of the early 1990's, the passing game that Mark Cooper has instilled into his charges bears comparison to those eras and is a breath of fresh air in a division of the football league that can suffer from the long ball game. However, being a child of the 1960's I missed one of the Swindon Town teams that is legend in this part of the West Country. "Bert's Babes" was a young Swindon Town team managed by Bert Head and included the likes of Rod Thomas, Ernie Hunt, Mike Summerbee, John Trollope and Don Rogers. Bert Head assembled a team of youngsters and drilled them in an almost military style, ensuring that his team was amongst the fittest in the league. (Link to "Six Days to Saturday" - Bert Head & Swindon Town) He achieved the first promotion in Swindon Town's history when the club was promoted to the then Division 2 at the end of the 1962/63 season. The foundations he put in place saw these youngsters go on to win the only domestic trophy Swindon Town has won when the club beat Arsenal 3 - 1 to lift the League Cup in 1969 under the stewardship of Danny Williams.

Yesterday's win versus Notts County (2 - 0) sees Swindon Town in a play-off position after a quarter of the season has passed. Plaudits are starting to come in from around the country regarding the team's style of play and, now that the players have gelled together, promotion this season can now be thought of as a very real possibility. Some of this can be attributed to the steadying hand of Jed McCrory who has put the club back on a stable footing. However, when the dust on this season has settled in May 2014, Mark Cooper can fly away to his summer holiday retreat, satisfied in the knowledge that his first season in the manager's hot seat has been a success, whatever position Swindon Town finish in League 1.  

  

Related articles.

• Football League column - Paolo Di Canio memory banished at Swindon Town

When Swindon Town Ruled Europe...Well, Italy Anyway.

Swindon Town has come up against the snobbery and unjust powers that be of the footballing world more than once in its history. After winning the 1990 Division 2 Play Off Final against Sunderland to achieve promotion to the then top flight Division 1, the demotion that followed for "financial irregularities" was harsh, especially when compared with the punishments dished out to Chelsea F.C. in 1991 and Tottenham Hotspur in 1994 (see Football Hypocrisy). A strange thing to note is that it is difficult to find anything about the Chelsea financial irregularities on the internet!?.

Before that episode, though, Swindon Town was denied the right to represent the English Football League in the 1969 - 70 Fairs Cup (later UEFA Cup). After thrashing Arsenal F.C. 3 - 1 at Wembley in the 1969 League Cup Final, being the winners should have given Swindon Town the right to compete in one of the then 3 European cup competitions, but, because they were not a First Division club, the Wiltshire team were deemed ineligible. It would seem that there was little or no support from the Football League in defence of the club's qualification to play in Europe, but a two-legged match was arranged between them and the winners of the Italian League Cup (the Coppa Italia) AS Roma. On 27th August 1969, Swindon Town lost the first leg in Rome 2 - 1, but won the second leg, and the cup, with a 4 - 0 victory.

The Anglo-Italian League Cup Winners' Cup

Anglo-Italian Cup

Buoyed by the success of the two matches, the two football associations organised an end of season competition, the Ango-Italian Cup, with six teams from each national league entering for the right to play for the trophy. In three groups, two English teams were paired with two from Italy in the group stages with each team playing a home and away leg with the teams from the other country in their group. At the end of the group stage, the team with the most points from both countries went through to the final - at this point, it is pertinent to add that Swindon Town not only beat Juventus 1 - 0 in Italy, but also thrashed them 4 - 0 at the County Ground! (see 1970 Anglo-Italian Cup).


The final took place on 28th May 1970 at the home of Napoli in front of

55,000 fans. A rampant Swindon Town had scored 3 goals by the 62nd minute and the hostile home crowd was not pleased. Ripping up seating and concrete, projectiles were thrown on the pitch and at the players and officials. After two pitch invasions, the match was abandoned after 75 minutes played and Swindon declared the winners. The idea of placating the crowd by displaying the trophy was a wrong move and Swindon Town players were injured when more rocks were thrown at them.

The unfortunate thing is that there is no video footage of the game itself, but footage of the victorious Swindon Town team displaying the trophy and of the rioting Napoli supporters has surfaced on Youtube (Napoli v Swindon Town - Anglo-Italian Cup).

This was not the first episode of crowd disturbance during this competition as the group stage game between L.R. Vicenza and West Bromwich Albion was abandoned when the Italian home crowd rioted. When one considers that these fans are now in their 60's at the very least, it's sad to note that football violence is not a new phenomenon.

Major League Soccer...How Does that Work?

For some time now, English football has adopted and has been playing, a simple play off system at the end of each season to decide the last promotion place from the Championship, League 1, League 2 and the Blue Square Premiership. It's structure has changed very little since 1987, the year that this scheme was adopted for deciding the final promotion place, the main difference being that, rather than over two legs, with the aggregate score deciding the winner, the final is now a one-off game played at Wembley. Swindon Town has featured many times in the play offs over the years, so it would be churlish to deride this method of promotion, but, personally speaking, aside from the excitement it gives to the involved teams' fans at the end of the season and the chance to have a day out at the English national stadium, it really is only a money-making exercise. After all, if your team has finished third (fourth in League 2 and second in the Blue Square Premiership), then haven't they won the right to be promoted above those that have finished below them in the league?

The Aviva Premiership for Rugby Union has adopted a play off system to decide the champion at the end of the season. Here, the team finishing first could have romped to the top of the table, stayed there all season, but then lose the mantle of being the best team in the Premiership, because they then lose to one of the three teams who finished below them that season. Such a system is patently unfair to the top of the table team and, as pointed out above, is in my opinion, a money-spinning exercise rather than an exciting end of season finale.




So where did this play off mentality come from. Well, we just have to look across "the pond" to see the way American Football, ice hockey and baseball finish their respective seasons to understand where the influence for our play off systems originated. With the USA being notorious for trying to squeeze as much profit from every professional sport within its borders, the play off process allows the governing bodies of each sport to introduce further competition at the end of the season, thereby wringing further income from the wallets of the fanbase. It's not surprising, therefore, that those persons in control of British sport looked at this money-making racket and decided that they wanted some of the action too.

All of the above takes me to the title of this blogpost; Major League Soccer...How Does that Work? It can only be this American mentality of squeeze every last cent out of a sport that has caused them to really screw up the notion of Association Football. In order to fit it in with the American psyche of how their existing professional sports are organised, the MLS is arranged into 2 conferences where there is no relegation or promotion, the prime raison d'etre of all other football leagues in the world. For a country that revels in competition, it seems ludicrous that there is no incentive in the form of at least an upper and lower division in the MLS. Further, not only do teams play each other within their own Conference, Eastern or Western, but they play the occasional match against the odd team from the other Conference. The MLS version of the FA Cup is not simply a knockout competition either. Rather than stick with a tried and tested system of organising a sport, the Americans take it, meddle with it and come up with something that bears little resemblance to the original article. For instance, in the early days of football in the USA, the notion that there could be a fair draw as a result at the end of a game seemed a difficult idea for them to grasp and the 35 yard, 5 second shootout was implemented. The "win at any cost" mentality meant that those tasked with converting the locals to the beautiful game in the USA bastardised the rules to the point where the English looked across the water and were left bewildered with the way our "cousins" didn't get the point of one of our national sports.

As a football fan, I would like to see the MLS develop and become the successful football league the USA needs and deserves. However, I feel that the concept of Association Football that has been implemented in the USA needs a rethink. Hopefully, and as we say over here, "third time lucky"!

Take a Deep Breath, Pause...and Here We Go Again!

In the UK, we are very good at building someone up only to knock them down again once that person is successful. Over the past few weeks, Paolo Di Canio, has tried Swindon Town fans' patience with his shenanigans and I for one have tried to see the positives and hope that, once the sale of the club had gone through, the feisty Italian would calm down and accept the manager's role that would be offered back to him by the new board. First impressions of Mr. Jed McCrory for me is that he is a genuine football fan who has now achieved his life's ambition of getting himself into a financial position where he can jointly own, and be chairman of, a professional English football club. Add to that, his obvious enthusiasm for wanting to get stuck into his new role and one can imagine that his first priority was to repair the damage and restore normalcy to the operation of the Wiltshire club. However, before there was a chance for the new chairman to offer an olive branch to Di Canio and reinstate him as the team manager, the ex-Swindon leader was on Sky Sports News explaining that his "Swindon chapter was over". Not long after, there are reports in the media that he is considering suing Swindon Town for breach of contract!? Desperately in denial, since Swindon Town was put up for sale, I have been a proponent for getting Paolo Di Canio back as manager. However, with what has been going on and with Paolo Di Canio acting like a spoilt brat, I have to finally give up my support for him.

Kevin MacDonald has been hired as the new manager of Swindon Town and his oppo is to be Mark Cooper, son of the legendary Terry Cooper (Leeds United et al and England). What strikes the observer  immediately about the new regime at SN1 are the smart suits and the obligatory club tie. The intended image is that of a business-like and united front, with one goal of getting Swindon Town to the second tier of the English League, the Championship. Here the club can really consolidate, build a new stadium and develop the income streams that will help Swindon Town sustain itself through the close season and build on the inevitable assault on the Premier League. His first game is going to be the away game at Coventry City on Saturday 2nd March and, hopefully, with 12 games to go, Swindon Town will be celebrating promotion as champions come the 27th April 2013. Swindon Town's history is being added to as this article goes to press and, with that pause for breath, the team can put the last two games behind them and focus on becoming champions of League 1 for the season 2012/2013.

Related articles 

• Paolo Di Canio is interviewed by Sky Sports News next to a picture of Paolo Di Canio
• MacDonald named Swindon manager

Ready Brek Glows All Round

Now that the dust is settling at the County Ground and the ink is dry on the dotted line, what can be said of the consortium that has taken control at Swindon Town? As can be seen on the SwindonWeb website (Meet the New Board), a press conference was held on Monday 25th February where the four front men were introduced to the public, with Jed McCrory the new Chairman. The session only lasted about half an hour and not much was said other than to introduce the four and explain very briefly their past experience, and their expected roles at the club. However, two things that were said that have significance for the club's future were very telling.

First, it was confirmed that the money behind the bid comes from two silent partners who wish to remain anonymous. Second, it was stated that the door is still left open for Paolo Di Canio to walk back into the club and pick up the reins as manager. The former statement is welcome as it confirms that the financial security is there. The latter piece of information shows that Di Canio may not have burnt all his bridges having resigned his position three days before this consortium bought the major shareholding in the club. Personally, I would like to see the headstrong Italian finish the job he started and get Swindon Town into the Championship with back-to-back promotions. There would have to be a lot of soul-searching on his part as to why he did what he did, leaving the team leaderless at such a crucial stage in the season, and he would have to be prepared to toe the line with the new board of directors and chairman, but, you never know, he may be back in the dugout soon.

Later, Jed McCrory gave interviews to various aspects of the media (see the Swindon Web website and the Points West interview (BBC Jed McCrory Interview)) and the nature of the takeover, and his own involvement in it was explained. He comes across as a very genuine person and foremost, a football fan. He mentioned that everyone at Swindon Town seemed to have a "Ready Brek" glow about them and that the "family" nature of the club was overwhelming. Whether teary-eyed through the emotion of the day, or red-rimmed due to the necessary long hours put in over the past few weeks  to get the deal done, Mr. McCrory looked truly pleased to be part of the Swindon Town story. Indeed, he looked like the child whose Christmases and birthdays had all come at once. Having listened to him and the other members of the new board, I feel that exciting times are ahead for Swindon Town, both on and off the field.      

Implosion at SN1, but Still Top of the League!

No manager, no backroom staff and, it would seem, no board, but Swindon Town are top of League 1! Paolo Di Canio departed on Monday and was followed by his loyal lieutenants this morning, the day after the Robins humbled Tranmere Rovers at Prenton Park, beating them 3 - 1 making the aggregate score for the two league games this season 8 - 1 to the Town and propelling Swindon town to the top of League 1. There follows an eerie atmosphere at the County Ground as tumble weed blows across the pitch and the stadium echoes to the sound of silence. It does not seem possible that the dulcet tones of an hysterical Italian will no longer be heard on a Saturday afternoon or a cold Tuesday night at the home of the foremost team in Wiltshire. I can't think of any jobless football manager who could possibly fill his shoes and that's where I have a theory about the whole comedy of errors surrounding the departure of the most successful Swindon Town manager in recent times.

Having threatened to resign if the takeover of the club didn't go through by 17:00 on Monday 18th February, in order to save face, Paolo Di Canio had no option other than to walk. However, there does not seem to have been any official statement from the football club accepting the manager's resignation, nor those of his backroom staff - an employer doesn't have to accept the resignation of an employee. It would seem that the management team have walked away, but there still remains the opportunity of an olive branch being offered to Paolo and his team to return when the takeover is ratified. In his statement released on Monday, Di Canio stated: 

"Following discussions, my representatives put forward a proposal that would secure my future at the club until at least the end of the season and quite possibly beyond as well. This proposal actually reduced the Clubs contractual liabilities to me in the interest of saving Swindon Town FC. At a meeting last Friday the proposed new owners accepted and said they were very happy with the new terms."

Perhaps these new terms are still valid and, after a big plate of humble pie, Di Canio will be welcomed into the new era at SN1? However, with pride coming before a fall, Paolo Di Canio may feel that his next venture lies away from the County Ground and he will only be seen back in the dugout in the away team area. This will be a great shame, as, if this is the case, whoever the new manager is, they will get the credit for Swindon town being promoted as champions of League 1 and not the man and his backroom team who started the ball rolling nearly two years ago.     

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Strategies for Football Club Ownership

The Haves & Have Nots 

English football is one of the most marketable products in the world of sport today. Although having had a disastrous, detrimental effect on the English national team, preventing many home-grown talents from experiencing superior domestic football and the concomitant improved chances of developing to be part of a world-beating national team, Sky's patronage of the English Premier League has turned the top flight of the English football pyramid into the product to which all national top divisions aspire. The world of Association Football, is awash with cash and, like any free market economy, the haves have, and the have nots, don't. Only a handful of Premier League clubs operate at a profit, whilst the rest exist on the television money and goodwill of their rich owners. This beggars the question, if this is how the likes of Liverpool F.C. exist, how are the lower league teams meant to survive in this cut-throat environment, where the dream of reaching the Premier League can only now ever be more than a pipe dream for most of the Football League clubs?

The answer has of course already been given above; bag yourself a rich owner who is willing to plough millions into a venture that is never likely to see any return on their investment. Or, God forbid, you cut your cloth accordingly, live within your means and fester in the lower divisions of the national setup. The former choice is what all football fans want, ideally a Jack Walker

or John Madejski, someone who understands English football and the culture of the fans. In this way, the chance of being allowed to dine at the rich man's table and compete for 38 games to retain the right to stay at that table may be attainable. In Andrew Black and the rest of the consortium who saved the club from oblivion, Swindon Town fans

Swindon Town Fans - None Better!

thought that they had found that person who was willing to sacrifice some of his riches in the pursuit of developing a lower league team into one that could hold its own in the Championship and perhaps even the Premier League. However, Mr. Black is really a horse racing fan and has tired of his involvement with the foremost team in Wiltshire, so is looking to offload his shareholding in Swindon Town. So where does that leave the club?

The harsh reality of the modern world is that football is now big business and, as such, each club should be run and managed along those lines. So, taking Swindon Town as the example, how does one take a middle of the road football club and turn it into one that can hope to compete with the "Big Four"? The first thing to do is find a benefactor with a big wallet. This should be in the shape of a wealthy individual as mentioned above or a large, cash-rich company. The former would probably have the passion to invest  in a sport they feel ardently about and not worry about gaining major returns on that investment, whilst the latter could offset any investment against their annual advertising/marketing budget; what better way to spread their brand around the world than have it married to a successful English Premier League club (e.g. The Emirates Stadium, The Etihad Stadium, etc). And that would be the first thing any serious bidder for Swindon Town should do - build a modern stadium.

New Stadium Required

A modern football stadium offers the opportunity for multiple income streams. It should be viewed as a venue, to be utilised 24/7, 365 days a year. With the proper build, the architecture could incorporate, conferencing facilities, a hotel, restaurants, fast food takeaway outlets, shops and offices to lease. As the British high streets have discovered, the majority of consumers like to have their shopping experience in one place in out of town retail parks rather than have the hassle of trudging through the town centre going from shop to shop. This is the way forward for football clubs, providing facilities and leisure activities all in one place. Further income streams could be sourced from on site gym/fitness clubs, perhaps a multiplex cinema and even have the stadium used by more than one team or sport. With a retractable roof, an all-weather venue would allow for concerts, car shows, etc - the possibilities are endless. If the new owners are foreign, linking back to their home country could provide valuable income in the form of replica shirt sales, etc.

As with any business, getting the correct people in the right roles is paramount. Fortunately for any potential investor, at Swindon Town, this has already been done. In Paolo Di Canio, the club has perhaps the most talented, ambitious and crazy manager in the entire Football League. His passion for his club, his team and the fans is overwhelming. He wants to succeed and no-one will stand in his way on his road to managerial greatness; ask Paul Caddis, the club captain who could seemingly do no wrong until he crossed Paolo. Probably the second best player at the club was cast aside and the team hasn't looked back. 

The next step is to have at least a five year plan. Swindon Town are currently running on a three year plan to get to the Championship, but, realistically, if the club is to be treated as a business (post new stadium and the facilities therein), the manager should be given reasonable resources to put a squad together and the time to meld that squad into a winning team. Success does not normally come overnight and in the fast paced world of football, some owners/chairmen have the patience of a man with a full bladder at the end of a long queue for the urinal.

The five year plan should, however, be flexible and provide for contingencies. If the success that is desired is planned for and a path to the goal is set, small tweaks of the plan should only be necessary to get to the target. Such contingencies should cover replacement of players through injury or where the manager feels an area of the team may need bolstering. A successful team will pull in the crowds which will in turn push interest in the direction of the other facilities in the new stadium providing additional income. Owning a football club is never going to provide huge financial rewards in itself, but, if the business model is sound, then success on the field will help fuel success off it. It just needs a visionary new owner to set the ball in motion.