IN the build-up to Friday's anniversary, here is a closer look at the squad that wrote their names into the STFC history books.
These profiles were used in the 'Premier Bound' feature of the 2012/13 edition of COYR, the official Swindon Town Matchday Programme. The statistics are all from the 1992/93 season only.
Fraser Digby
Appearances: 39
Clean sheets: 15
A key and iconic member of Swindon’s promotion winning side. After playing the full 90 minutes against Sunderland and keeping a clean sheet in Town’s opening day win, Digby started the first eleven games between the sticks before losing his place in the side following a 2-0 defeat at Charlton Athletic in late September. With manager Glenn Hoddle opting to play Nicky Hammond instead, Digby had to wait nearly four months to regain the Number One shirt when he played in a victory at rivals Oxford United in January. For the rest of the campaign, he was the manager’s preferred choice in goal and played in the Play-Off final at Wembley.
Nicky Summerbee
Appearances: 48
Goals: 4
Summerbee started the 1992/93 season on the right hand side of defence before being moved up into the right wing position. His first outing as a winger yielded a goal in an Anglo-Italian cup tie at Oxford United and, between September and March, Summerbee kept his position in midfield. In early March, full-back David Kerslake was sold to Leeds which prompted the manager to shift Summerbee back into the right-back position. He stayed in the marauding wing-back role for the remainder of the campaign, adding an extra dimension to Town’s attacking brand of football. He played 90 minutes at Wembley and had a hand in three of Swindon’s goals.
Paul Bodin
Appearances: 42
Goals: 12
Town’s first-choice left back under Glenn Hoddle, Bodin played a crucial role during the 1992/93 promotion season. Installed as the club’s designated penalty taker, Bodin weighed in with an amazing 12 goals from the full-back position over the course of the campaign, helping to secure vital points in Town’s push for promotion. He will always be remembered as the man who scored the goal that took Swindon into the Premier League, keeping his cool to slot home the winning goal from the spot at Wembley.
Glenn Hoddle
Appearances: 49
Goals: 3
The player-manager who masterminded Swindon’s promotion to the top flight by playing an attractive, attacking brand of football. Hoddle got the 1992/93 season off to a flyer with a thumping left-footed winner against Sunderland on the opening day. His contribution was perhaps as significant on the field as it was off it: his deep position in midfield allowed him to dictate the Town’s way of playing. He only scored three goals over the course of the campaign with arguably his most important coming at Wembley, tucking home Craig Maskell’s back-heel to give Swindon the lead.
Colin Calderwood
Appearances: 54
Goals: 2
Swindon’s talismanic skipper and the rock upon which Hoddle built his defensive unit. Calderwood started nearly every game for Town in 1992/93 only missing an FA Cup defeat at QPR through suspension after being red-carded at Leicester in December. While his primary job was to keep goals out he did score a crucial winning goal against eventual champions Newcastle United to help Town claim all three points. In May 1993, he became the first man to captain Swindon to two Wembley wins.
Shaun Taylor
Appearances: 54
Goals: 13
Colin Calderwood’s partner in the centre of Town’s defence, Taylor was another key member of the 1992/93 vintage. The big centre-half also contributed at the other end of the pitch, scoring 13 goals across the campaign, including three in the opening four games of the season to help Town up to second in the Division One table. Taylor eventually finished third on the club’s top scorer list for the season. He notched Town’s third goal at Wembley, beating Leicester ‘keeper Kevin Poole to a bouncing ball with a diving header.
John Moncur
Appearances: 19
Goals: 2
The 1992/93 season was a frustrating one for John Moncur, with injury causing him to miss a lot of the campaign. He recovered in time to make a substitute appearance in the defeat at Barnsley on the final day of the season and hit the ground running in the Play-offs, playing his part in securing Town’s promotion. Moncur played in all three play-off games, scoring at Tranmere to help ensure Swindon’s place at Wembley. He set up Swindon’s second and third goals against Leicester.
Ross MacLaren
Appearances: 25
Goals: 0
Another survivor from Swindon’s Wembley win in 1990, MacLaren missed half of the 1992/93 campaign with an injury sustained during the previous season. It was not until late January that the midfielder would make a return to the side, playing 90 minutes in a 2-1 defeat at Grimsby Town. He did not manage to find the net over the course of the season, the first time he had failed to score in a campaign since his move from Derby County in 1988. Playing in Town’s three-man midfield, MacLaren would start every game for the remainder of the season including all three Play-Off games.
Dave Mitchell
Appearances: 49
Goals: 16
Town’s second top-goalscorer during the 1992/93 season, the Australian international formed a fruitful partnership with fellow striker Craig Maskell. Mitchell played his part in Town’s promotion with 16 goals. One of the highlights of his season came at Birmingham City where his hat-trick helped Town claw back a three-goal deficit to run out 6-4 winners at St Andrews. He scored in the first leg of the play-off semi-final against Tranmere and played 90 minutes at Wembley.
Martin Ling
Appearances: 52
Goals: 4
One of Town’s midfield marvels of the 1992/93 season, Ling played in virtually every game. He managed to chip in with four goals from the middle of the park, opening his account in the 2-2 draw with Oxford at The County Ground. He found the net against Torquay and Notts County before scoring the winning goal against Southend United in November, a result that helped to keep Town in the top two of the division. Ling played every minute of Town’s play-off campaign and after a sterling performance against Leicester at Wembley, he was named Man of the Match.
Craig Maskell
Appearances: 41
Goals: 23
Brought to The County Ground in the summer of 1992, Maskell finished the season as Town’s top-scorer with 23 goals. After scoring his first goal in the 2-2 draw at Wolves in late August, he went on to net eight times in the opening ten games of the season. Despite suffering a mini goal drought between December and April, Maskell bagged a brace in Town’s 6-4 win at Birmingham before scoring in both legs of the play-off semi-final against Tranmere. He scored Town’s second at Wembley, thumping a left-footed drive off the post and into the net.
Steve White
Appearances: 43
Goals: 9
Despite his hero status at Swindon, “Chalky” did not start a game until October when he scored in Town’s League Cup win over Torquay. His first league start came at Oxford in January where he scored the only goal of the game. This prompted a run of starts in the team which yielded a further five goals, including a hat-trick in Swindon’s 4-0 win against Watford at Vicarage Road. White sealed his hat-trick when he capped a brilliantly worked free-kick routine. He came on as a substitute for Craig Maskell at Wembley and was fouled for the penalty that Paul Bodin would convert, cementing his place as a Swindon legend.
Micky Hazard
Appearances: 39
Goals: 3
Another creative force in the heart of Swindon’s midfield, Hazard only scored three goals across the whole 1992/93 campaign and interestingly, all of those matches ended in defeat for the Town: against West Ham, Derby and Leicester. After coming off against Wolves in late January, Hazard would miss over two months of the season after undergoing a cartilage operation before making a return to action in April. Prior to his absence, he started every game he was involved in. He came on in the first leg of the play-off semi final against Tranmere before replacing John Moncur in the play-off final.
Nicky Hammond
Appearances: 16
Clean Sheets: 4
As understudy to Fraser Digby, Hammond started the season out of the side. He made his first appearance at the end of September, keeping a clean sheet in a 1-0 home win over Grimsby Town. This prompted Glenn Hoddle to give Hammond a run of matches in the team that lasted until the New Year and produced three more clean sheets. Eventually, after a poor run of results, Hammond became a casualty of Town’s Christmas slump. Following Town’s FA Cup defeat at Queens Park Rangers in January, he was replaced by Digby for the rest of the campaign.
Brian Marwood
Appearances: 11
Goals: 1
The experienced, former Arsenal winger was brought in by Glenn Hoddle in March of 1993. After making his debut as a substitute against Newcastle, Marwood made his first start and scored his only goal in Town colours during the 2-1 defeat of Bristol City in late March, looping a header over the goalkeeper to give Swindon the lead. The ex-England international only played 11 times for the Town with most appearances coming from the substitutes’ bench. His last outing in a Swindon shirt came in the defeat at Barnsley on the final day of the season.
David Kerslake
Appearances: 36
Goals: 0
Another survivor of Town’s 1990 Wembley win, Kerslake was initially left out in favour of Nicky Summerbee. After starting in Town’s 2-2 draw at Wolves in September, Kerslake became the preferred choice at right full-back with Summerbee pushing up into midfield. His performances attracted the attention of bigger clubs and in March 1993, Kerslake made his final appearance in a 4-0 demolition of Watford before he was sold to Premier League side Leeds United for half a million pounds.
Adrian Viveash
Appearances: 6
Goals: 0
A native Swindonian and a graduate of the Town’s youth academy, Viveash made just six appearances during the 1992/93 season. Given the near-impossible task of prising apart the central-defensive partnership of Colin Calderwood and Shaun Taylor, Viveash’s first start came in the Anglo-Italian cup win at Oxford. He would have to wait until March to start his first League game, a 1-1 draw at Southend United. This sparked a run of four further starts in the side, with his final appearance of the campaign coming in a 3-1 defeat at West Ham in early May.
Paul Hunt
Appearances: 6
Goals: 0
The striker was another native Swindonian in Glenn Hoddle’s squad who had progressed up through the youth ranks into the first team. His first start of the season came in a 3-1 Anglo-Italian cup win at Oxford United before making his first league appearance as a substitute in a 3-2 win against Southend in November. After starting the reverse fixture at Southend, ‘Oggie’ would start the next four games for Swindon including the 2-1 victory over title-chasing Newcastle at The County Ground. Town never lost a game that season when Hunt had been on the pitch.
Kevin Horlock
Appearances: 17
Goals: 1
Horlock was brought to the club in August 1992 by Glenn Hoddle. Originally playing at left-back, He made his Town debut in the League Cup second-leg win over Torquay. His first league appearance came four days later as a substitute at Portsmouth. He started his first game and scored his first Town goal, his only goal of the campaign, in the 5-1 defeat of Notts County. Horlock would go on to make a further 14 appearances that season but played no part in any of the Play-Off games.
Shaun Close
Appearances: 9
Goals: 0
One of the fringe players of Town’s 1992/93 campaign, Close’s chances of replacing either Dave Mitchell or Craig Maskell up front was near impossible and he was often an unused substitute. Despite effectively being fourth in the pecking order behind Steve White, the striker did manage to make nine appearances across the campaign. He came on against Sunderland on the opening day of the season before making his first start against Oxford United in the Anglo-Italian Cup. His final appearance of the season came in the 1-0 home win against Luton Town.
Andy Gray
Appearances: 3
Goals: 0
An England ‘one-cap wonder’, Gray was brought in on loan from Tottenham Hotspur by Glenn Hoddle in January 1993. The midfielder only made three appearances for the Robins during his temporary spell, starting all of the games he played in. He made his first start in the 1-0 win at Oxford on the 9th January before playing all 90 minutes of the 0-0 draw with Birmingham City and the 2-2 draw with Charlton Athletic at The County Ground.
Austin Berkley
Appearances: 1
Goals: 1
Signed as a youngster from Gillingham in the summer of 1992, Berkley made only one appearance for Town across the entire 1992/93 campaign. The winger played 90 minutes of Town’s Anglo-Italian Cup win against Oxford at the Manor Ground. He scored Swindon’s third goal in a 3-1 win. His only other involvement in the first team came in early November when he was an unused substitute in Town’s 0-0 draw against Newcastle United at St James’ Park.
Chris Hamon
Appearances: 2
Goals: 0
Hamon was signed from Channel Island club St. Peter ahead of the 1992/93 season. Another striker given the unenviable task of forcing his way past Dave Mitchell and Craig Maskell in the bid for a role in Town’s attack, Hamon would only make two appearances for the Robins over the course of the campaign. He came on as a late replacement for Ross MaClaren in Swindon’s 1-0 win over Luton Town at The County Ground before starting and playing 80 minutes of the 1-0 defeat at Barnsley on the final day of the league season.
Wayne O’Sullivan
Appearances: 1
Goals: 0
Another product of the Swindon Town youth system, O’Sullivan had just broken through and, as a result, only played once for the Town first team during the 1992/93 season. Like a number of Glenn Hoddle’s fringe players, O’Sullivan made his only appearance in red in the 3-1 Anglo-Italian Cup preliminary round win at Oxford United. He played 90 minutes in a 3-1 win. O’Sullivan would have to wait until the arrival of Steve McMahon as manager before establishing himself at Town, making 41 appearances in the 1995/96 Division Two title-winning campaign.
Eddie Murray
Appearances: 1
Goals: 0
Very much a fringe player during the promotion season, Murray graduated from the youth ranks at The County Ground and made his Swindon debut in 1991. After a year out of first team involvement, he was an unused substitute against Oxford in an Anglo-Italian cup win in September 1992. Murray would make his only appearance of the season in the FA Cup defeat at QPR when he was introduced from the bench. For the remainder of the season he would appear on team-sheets as an unused substitute and last featured in a match-day squad in March as Swindon swept aside Watford 4-0 at Vicarage Road.