Swindon Town v Brighton & Hove Albion Official Matchday Thread

[Batch]

Not that it matters, but did anyone else notice that Brighton kicked off both halves of extra time?

Yes, but then we doubted our own sanity..

[DarloSTFC84]

Isn't the suspension for a straight red less than the suspension for 2 yellows?

I'm sure Louis Thompson's suspension was for a 'professional foul' and was only one game? Surely the same for Nathan?

[Batch]

Yes they said 1 game on the post match radio

[DarloSTFC84]

Thanks, not too bad then.

[@mwooly63]

Cracking first half, thought we were unlucky in front of goal first half second half just awful ( despite the 2 classy well taken goals we scored ) 2 shots over the TE roof and even more over the bar. If we had taken half of those we would be in the hat.
Didnt think BHA offered much first 45 except for that piledriver of a goal.Last 15 of normal time we rode our luck as game turned a bit dire.
In stature terms they had some big units out on the pitch.
Tackle on Gladwin was awful and buggered our substitutions somewhat

Injuries are gonna cost us as is NTs suspension for a rash and stupid tackle, depth of squad is really going to show now.
Cant fault the passion and desire they showed out there tonight tho.

[DarloSTFC84]

I have to say, I'm really pleased to see all of the hype from the fans and media alike. Bearing in mind a large section of our fanbase had really low expectations for this season (understatement, in some cases), to see such praise is immense. Not many of our fans wanted Cooper, and a huge number hated the thought of Power at the helm, but it's nice that they've still carried on with their business and reaping the rewards.

Let's hope it continues and we get some additions...but the right ones and not just ones 'making up numbers'.

[THE FLASH]

What a fucking strike from Brighton.....I stood and applauded.....Fods no chance.

We played really well...really well...and the match was an exciting one.i enjoyed it all bar the result.

Final scoreline did not do us justice.

Skyed some really good chances....they hit the bar...etc etc.

I heard Chuckles getting some stick around me for the subs but I disagree....UmBongo had a quiet match etc etc.

Barker injured...bad for the player...shame...but doesn't other me in the slightest.

Gladwin and Thompson missing on Saturday is a blow and the threadbare squad will now beb under severe pressure.

Roll on Saturday and hope and pray that Power can at least get some loans in.

[Frigby Daser]

The first half was fantastic. We played with an energy that simply wasn't there on Saturday, with Luongo the driving force behind it. It was genuinely entertaining stuff and Michael Smith could easily have had a couple of goals after good work down the right from Byrne. We continued after they scored, but without a final product. For all of our good football, Ankergren didn't have anything of particular note to do that I can remember. Louis got his goal - Smith did well having been gifted the call by Calderon (I think) and Louis received a good through ball and nipped it under Ankergren very well - perhaps he'd been practicing after his one on one miss from Saturday.

After 65-70 minutes though, we were finished. Whether that is fitness or application, I do not know. In ET in seemed inevitable they'd go ahead as we ran out of any running, and once they went 3-1 up it seemed as if everyone wanted to go home - many headed got the exit as soon as the penalty went in. Kasim's magical little run, when Brighton just stood there and watched, gave some impetus to the last 10, but the result was rarely in doubt.

A positive overall, but a missed opportunity to boost the finances. If we can sustain that football for 90 minutes we will go up. For 65 minutes, we'll be mid table.

As an aside, I really felt for Brad Smith again tonight. Again he was continually taking up good positions down the left, wide open, and his teammates failed to give him the ball time and time again. It narrows our game. Turnbull, as on Saturday, was the main culprit. He was impressive overall, but needs to learn to open up his body to knock it out to the wing with his left, or learn to pass with his right.

Power's programme notes made interesting reading last night too. Another blunt dig at the local media following the Adver stories on the public address, scoreboard and policing. If you are reading Lee: they'll only print one side of the story if you refuse to talk to them, and despite the claims that relations with the police are good, your notes admit that there were outstanding invoices for which a payment plan has had to be put in place. That in itself is newsworthy, because we had not paid.

[kerry red]

One thing was bizarre last night.

their No 14 spent most of extra time right on the touchline and directly in front of the lino, deliberately blocking his view of play.

Fuck knows what that was about

And their appeared to be significantly more than 5400 at the CG

[Batch]

YouTube of first goal does not do it justice. Surprised how empty the drs looks. Felt busier

[THE FLASH]

Superb strike....

You saw it coming as well...

[Ginginho]

Really enjoyed that game despite the outcome.
They only beat us because of the injuries. Michael Smith looked like he damaged his shoulder, but carried on, so effectively we played extra time with 9 men.

Luongo was my MOM, his best game for us I reckon.
Kasim, well, I fucking love him. He grabbed the game by the scruff of the neck during extra time and got us back into it single-handedly. He's a classy, classy player.

Shame it ended as it did with a slip from Nathan Thompson, then the inevitable penalty and sending off.

The players couldn't have put in any more effort last night, they should be very proud of their performance.

[Peter Venkman]

Some Swindon friendly comments on the BAHFC forum about us.

Firstly if Swindon had composure in the final third we would have been stuffed out of sight. Real lack of communication it seemed (Greer and Stockdale looked to be missed in this area). Kasim looks the real deal and worth consideration.

Just got back from the game. We got pretty much pasted for 90 minutes and only really took advantage when they went down to 10 men, but we got through and that's all that counts. If Swindon could finish though, we could've easily found ourselves on the end of a defeat. Their play in the final third really was shocking.

They all get a 10 from me for having the class and good grace to apparently seek out Swindon manager to praise his teams efforts and style of playing. Nice touch.

Swindon were the better team, and with a striker would have been beaten us easily. Kasim was quality, but our midfield played particularly poorly in my opinion

On Kasim, I suppose you just can't always tell how a player's going to develop. There are plenty of stories in the league of players rejected by this club or that, who then go on to have superb careers elsewhere. It's odd, though, that he was being talked about as such a hot prospect in Swindon's side so soon after joining them (before the end of his first season with them I saw gossip linking him with a move to the top flight). Suggests either he didn't show any of that while he was with us, or we simply misjudged him.

Swindon played some lovely stuff and deserved better.

We were lucky today that Swindon collectively had difficulty in locating the proverbial barn door

120 minutes of decent quality football, not the hoofball you my expect from league 1, Sadly, mostly from Swindon - fortunately they couldn't hit a barn door.

Yep, agree about swindon, they were really excellent. Passed us off the park for most of the game: reminded me of us during the Poyet L1 days.

I remember going to Swindon and losing 3-0 in the League Cup two seasons ago with a much stronger team on paper. Swindon were the better team over 90 minutes but we held our own and hit the bar during a really strong spell in the second half.

[blah blah]

My first game for some time due to one reason or another. On my own for the week as the wife & kids are away so on a whim decided that £12 was a no-brainer and made the trip.

I was very impressed with Town for the first 60-70 minutes, not only did they pass the ball well but they pressed Brighton high up the pitch, not giving them time and space to play.

The midfield 3 were superb, Kasim grew into the game the longer it went on and by ET he was on a different planet to everyone else. Stronger finishing would have seen us win comfortably, but on another day that will come.

Biggest mistake of the match ? Going to 4 at the back when we went down to 10. For those 10 minutes or so, we looked really vulnerable and conceded 2 goals, then seemed to tighten up more when we went back to 3.

Was impressed with Turnbull, although he didnt look comfortable with the ball at his feet, even more so than Branco who although he looked only a kick away from a howler, at least tried to inject some forward momentum.

Overall, the difference was in the finishing and depth of squad. While they could bring on seasoned L1/Champ pros, we brought on kids and lost a bit of fluidity. Not many L1 teams will play like Brighton did, and many will try to kick us off the park, so I suspect we will struggle to maintain this level of performance as the season goes on, but for £12, it was certainly great value for money last night.

As an aside, I thought it was a really strange atmosphere last night. There was very little singing/cheering while play was going on, just polite applause when the move broke down. Is it always like that these days ?

[kerry red]

You  are correct about the atmosphere, or lack thereof.

It seems our fans have been lifted en masse from a game of croquet