Swindon Town

"Do the supporters proud" will be Mark Cooper's final message to his troops before they take on Oxford United in this evening's derby clash at the Kassam Stadium.

Town make the short trip up the A420 in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy second round match and the manager admits that he wants to give Swindon's supporters the bragging rights.

"I'm looking forward to it," he told the official website. "It's the next game and we need to get back on track but I've been made aware of the passion and how much it means to the fans and everybody in Swindon. We want to go and put in a good performance and bring home the victory.

"As a player, you're aware of certain local derbies and you always know about Swindon v Oxford. Speaking to people around the town, they don't like each other very much so I'm desperate to get the Swindon fans the bragging rights and, more importantly, get us back on track."

Town last recorded a win over their rivals back in 2001 when two stunning volleys from Steve Robinson secured a 2-0 win at the Manor Ground. "It's a long time, 14 years" Cooper continued. "We're going there short on numbers but we've still got the quality to be able to get a result. Oxford are flying high and they've got an experienced team that are winning games. We've been beset with injuries and international call-ups so we're looking for a starting point and we're hoping that's tonight."

The manager also confirmed who would be missing from the squad that took on Blackpool at the weekend: "From Saturday we've lost Fabien Robert for four to six weeks and Louis Thompson and Yaser Kasim are away on international duty. So we're down to the bare bones but the team I put out will be the strongest one available and we'll give it everything we've got."

He added: "(I'll be telling the players) give it everything you've got and give them (the supporters) something to shout about. The one thing we want to do is put on a performance that everyone can be proud of and that's what we're aiming to do."

A reminder that Town's allocation for tonight's match is SOLD OUT. Full match commentary is available on STFC PlayerHD. Click here to subscribe.