Go Out With A Bang?

Let’s Go Out With A Bang?

I remember when we lost our first game of the season, we heard words uttered that would be uttered again "Let’s not lose two in a row" – well it’s been six defeats in a row, 5 of them in the league and just two league wins since 2004 was unveiled on the calendar. Pride has long since gone but some of that can be salvaged over the course of the next three games.

We’re a mere shadow of the team that was steam rollering over the opposition in the opening weeks of the season and questions have been raised by the supporters over the abilities of many of the current squad.

At the end of September, optimism was high with the Swans second in the table having lost their top two clash at Hull on the last day of the month to surrender top spot. It was a place we were not to regain again this season.

The following 32 games have seen us win just 7 times and lose 13 in the process. Our tally of 33 points from those 32 games is only beaten (!) by Scunthorpe (29 from 32) and York (26 from 32) – it has led to the phrase "If it wasn’t for the first ten games….." being common place both here on the internet and around the Vetch Field. For the large proportion of this season we have been looking like a side that is capable of being worse than last season’s horror show.

It can be a mystery. There is ability in the squad and the reasons why it has gone wrong has been debated to death. The fact is that it did go wrong and we have had to learn to live with that fact and accept it.

Now we have the chance to put some pride back into the name of Swansea City and look to get maximum points from the last 3 games of the season. Many of the current squad are out of contract in the summer, and even those who are in contract cannot be sure at the moment that they will feature in the plans of the new manager who will have his own ideas on what, or who, is needed to turn this squad into a side that is capable of challenging for promotion next season.

I don’t believe we are a million miles away from that squad although I do accept that we lack depth in certain areas of the park and with the right application of skill and effort this can be a team that does challenge and, as many have said, promotion is not essential, but preferable next season – we don’t want White Rock to host third division football in it’s first year do we?

Many sides that end seasons on winning runs also tend to start following seasons in the same vein. Winning can become a habit – ask John Hollins’ side of 2000 – and although these games coming up are meaningless now they can build momentum which can carry on over the summer. And it will be a summer of hard work at the Vetch – few will doubt that going into the close season.

This is a proud football club. We have competed at the very top of this league ladder and we have also competed with the very best in Europe. Indeed it is only 13 years since we held Monaco to a European draw at the Vetch – now remind me again what they did this week? We aren’t in that league and probably never will be but that is the name of the football club that the players are playing under.

All week we have celebrated on here, 10 years since Wembley success – one of the club’s proudest days – let’s see some fight, passion and above all pride from now on in and maybe, just maybe, let’s finish this season in the way that we started it – winning, and winning with style.

I am convinced that we have the right man to steer this club in the right direction and I am also convinced that we have some of the right players as well – let’s show what we are capable of and give us suffering supporters some optimism for next season starting from now?

JACK ARMY!

Why not check out the latest Vetch Verdict on the BBC site?