Phil Sumbler
A famous striker once said “it’s a funny old game” although you could be forgiven for not thinking there is much funny about us already losing five points this season thanks to the conceding of stoppage time goals.
However, what it does demonstrate with those five points is just how fine the margins are in the Championship with those five points – had we successfully seen out stoppage time – being the difference between our current 16th place in the league and a place in the division’s top five. That is most definitely fine margins for you.
As we reach the halfway point in the international break many Swans fans will have an eye on Wales’ last Nations League game against Poland whilst also looking ahead to the trip to West Brom next Saturday. Not only is it one of the traditionally well supported fixtures for Swans side it is also the chance to build on the excellent 3-0 win over Hull that immediately preceded the two week break from league action.
Russell Martin will not be oblivious to the lapse of concentration at the end of games that has seen us see victory slip from our grasp against Millwall and Stoke and cost us a well deserved point at home to Sheffield United.
It adds to letting a two goal lead slip at Oxford in the League Cup as well as giving up three goal leads against Reading and Bournemouth at the end of last season. It’s a worrying habit that has formed and one that needs to be removed from the mindset if we are to have a successful season at the moment.
For all the moans (and jeers) we have heard about Russell Martin and his squad this season what would the reaction have been had we currently sat in fifth place in the league looking up at those just above us instead of slightly nervously looking at those below us.
You can call them lapses in concentration, defensive errors or whatever you choose but somehow Russell Martin and the squad have got to find a way to get them out of their system and turn the scorelines they worked so hard to achieve into the results that they deserve.
It is often said that this division is the hardest division in the world and we know from experience that whether you are bottom or top anybody can beat anybody on their day. It is easy to look at the likes of Norwich, Burnley and Sheffield United and know that we maybe cannot compete on a financial footing with them but – if we put our mind to it – can we compete with them on the pitch? Well, if we can cut out the late minutes of madness then the answer is quite possibly.
Much of our success this season will come down to how much we have to rely on the depth of the squad. The financial position at the club tells you that we wont have the most in depth of squads but if we can mix the experience together with the hunger that others are showing then we certainly should be looking to spend more time looking up than down this season. Thankfully.
It is fine margins without a doubt but we need to tip those margins in our favour and a climb of the table could easily come.
The Swans of course return to action on Saturday with that trip to West Brom which is the first of seven fixtures in the month. It will be a pivotal month for our season as well with away trips to Burnley, Watford and Bristol City together with home games against Sunderland and Reading all sides currently in the division’s top ten. Throw in a South Wales derby in amongst that as well and we have a huge month ahead.
Bring it on.
Swansea City October Fixtures
