GRIMSBY TOWN 2

SWINDON TOWN 1

Further frustration for Town fans with the disappointing result from Blundell Park, where Swindon went down 2-1 against Grimsby Town, writes Peter Mitchell.

Although the Town played pretty well, they did not make the most of the wind advantage in the first half and were ultimately undone by experienced striker, Wes Thomas.

The home side took the lead when Sid Nelson misjudged an awkward ball and handled just inside the area. Once again Matt Taylor popped up to convert yet another 25 yard free kick to get Swindon back on level terms. However, despite the visitors having the best of play after the interval, on the hour mark Thomas snatched the winner. Swindon should have prevented Elliot Embleton’s shot from distance and Thomas was on hand to knock in the rebound after Vigouroux’s save.

Up front, Elijah Adebayo looked lively, had two or three good chances, but seems to lack that killer finish that all good strikers possess.

Afterwards Richie Wellens was not downbeat and felt his team had put in a good enough performance to have preserved their unbeaten league run. Unfortunately, what you deserve and what you get in football, are often not the same thing.

Next Saturday Town have a tricky home fixture against local rivals Cheltenham Town, who always seem to do pretty well against us. Hopefully the manager is learning something from these inconsistent displays and coming to conclusions about what he needs to strengthen his squad in January.

In an interesting move this week, Swindon appointed the experienced Paul Jewell,54, to be their director of football. Jewell managed both the Wigan Athletic and Bradford City teams when they reached the Premier League for the first time in their respective histories – he also played for both those teams - so he’s definitely been there, done it, and got the t-shirt. My initial reaction was apprehension – remember Tim Sherwood ! – but then I discovered that the new Town manager had actually instigated this appointment, after working with him briefly at Oldham. Wellens has been quoted in the press as saying he would like to have an older mentor to bring more balance to his young management team. Apparently, the new man will concentrate his attention to matters off the field, such as identifying and recruiting new players, leaving the manager to focus his efforts on coaching and training his squad. This appears to be a very positive move that hopefully will reap some tangible dividends over the next few months.