Swindon Town face a Newport County side in buoyant mood as they ended league-leaders Leyton Orient’s impressive unbeaten run at the weekend.
The Exiles head to The County Ground tomorrow evening looking to build on that result, with Town looking to bounce back after their narrow 2-1 defeat to Northampton Town on Saturday.
Here’s what First-Team Head Coach, Scott Lindsey, had to say ahead of the game as he addressed the media in his pre-match press conference this afternoon.
What’s the latest on the current injury situation?
“Unfortunately we’ll be without Angus MacDonald as he suffered a dislocated collar bone at the weekend, so that’s a real significant one for us.
“It’s too early to give a prognosis just yet, and I’ll be speaking to our medical staff to see whether he may need an operation, but it’s still a little too early to tell.
“Tom Clayton is back and good to go, and it’s the same for Mathieu Baudry who missed Saturday with illness, but he’s recovered and will be available for selection.
“Luke Jephcott came off against Northampton as he felt his groin slightly. He hasn’t played much football but we took him off as a precaution more than anything, but he’s fine.
“We’ve got good numbers in the defensive areas which is good, but of course you never want to lose you captain and a player like Angus, but it’s something we have to deal with and we’ll pick the team accordingly.”
How do you assess Newport ahead of the game?
“They got a good result at the weekend against a side flying high in the division who have been dominating most games they’ve played, so they’ll no doubt be full of confidence.
“They have good players and a blend of youth and experience in the ranks with a couple of forwards that are a handful.
“They have energy and legs in midfield, so it will be another tough game for us. I know I say it most weeks, but we must be at our best to ensure we take all three points.
Newport have been labelled a progressive side that might lack a little physicality, is that something you agree with?
“Not really. I think they are a progressive side that can be physical when they need, and the two forwards get in and around it, getting hold of the ball and flicking it on for the runners in midfield.
“They use their wide players well and I’m expecting another really tough game, and like I said, they’ve just taken three points off the league leaders, so we’ll need to compete for everything.”
Newport have only kept the one clean sheet so far this term, does that give you confidence you can exploit their defence?
“We’ve looked at Saturday’s game and we want to ensure we create goalscoring opportunities every time we play.
“We want to be aggressive in the final third and attack with guile and determination, while also getting plenty of bodies into the final third.
“We have good players in these areas and we want to try and create as much as we can, and hopefully this will lead to goals.
Newport’s result at weekend was somewhat of a shock as they probably haven’t started as well as everyone expected, is that a good example of just how unpredictable the league is?
“It’s a perfect example in my opinion and anything can happen in this division.
“We obviously do a lot of talking and analysis behind the scenes and you can’t earmark a game and say that is one you’ll win as every side is difficult to play against, so we have to prepare in the right way.
“Teams at the bottom can beat those at the top, and the sides leading the way can drop points to those below them which throws up results you wouldn’t expect.
“But we prepare in the right way for every game and ensure we recover well, with a focus on doing everything right in the match in order to get maximum points.
“We have a style of football and we stick to it, and there will be times when we’ll have to roll our sleeves up and dig deep, like you saw in the Grimsby game, but I feel I have a group of players capable of doing that.”
How much will losing Angus, your captain and such a consistent performer, effect the team tomorrow evening?
“Well I’m hoping not at all as we have good players to come in with strength and depth in that department.
“I really trust in the players that come in even if they haven’t featured a great deal. When preparing for a game we don’t just focus on the starting eleven, but those in and around it too, so I’m not concerned.”
