1. Freestone
2. Casey #
3. Howard
4. Sharp @
5. Bound
6. Todd
7. Phillips
8. Coates $
9. Cusack
10. Tyson
11. Williams

12. Watkin #46
13. Lacey $59
14. Mumford
15. Jones
16. Smith @74

    ---

 Luton

1. Emberson
2. Skelton
3. Perrett
4. Coyne
5. Hillier
6. Brkovic
7. Nicholls
8. Spring
9. Valois
10. Howard
11. Crowe

    ---

12. Ovendale
13. Forbes
14. Fotiadis
15. Holmes
16. Dryden

We can call for Pettys head and protest all we want, but if the team fails to get a shot on target in 90 minutes then it will be to no avail. This is not to fault the commitment and determination of the side which was as good as ever. Nor is it a criticism of the pattern of play that we have adopted under Addison. But at the end of the day we were beaten by a rampant Luton side which looks destined for an immediate return to Division two.

In the relatively short journey to Luton we had been playing the 'guess the right sided full back' game - and it turned out to be Phillips who occupied that berth, sadly out of position. His counterpart on the left was Howard, with Bound, Todd and newly arrived Sharp making up the central three. Coates, Cusack and Casey were in midfield with Tyson and Williams up front. Luton looked the more likely side from the outset, but were frustrated by the aggression of the Swans defence and failed to make any clear-cut openings in the first 20 mins. The Swans grew in confidence and began to push forward themselves having weathered the early storm. But they then gifted an opening goal to the home side, as a result of a Swans attack which broke down. With Phillips out of position a long ball sent Dean Crowe away in acres of space and he cut inside to beat Freestone easily. A minute later the same player should have doubled the lead when a defensive lapse again saw him one on one with Freestone but this time he shot wide.

To their credit the Swans kept their shape and did their best to try and pass their way back into the game. But the better chances still fell to Luton and Chris Coyne should have done better when he was left unmarked from a free kick, but shot lamely wide. Some good interplay between Casey & Tyson almost fashioned a chance for Ryan on 33 minutes, but he narrowly failed to connect with Tyson's cross. On 41 mins Todd was caught out on a long ball and Adrian Forbes again found himself one on one with Roger, but this time Wales's number one made an excellent save to keep us in the game. On the stroke of half time Ryan Casey produced our best attempt on goal - a subtle chip which just cleared the bar.

For the second half our best player up to that point (Casey) inexplicably made way for Watkin. As the half began we felt that we needed to keep it tight for the first 15 but it soon became obvious that the home side meant business. The excellent Valois shot just wide on 46 mins after controlling the ball brilliantly with his chest. And on 51 mins he produced a superb left footed cross which was met on the volley by Brkovic only for the ball to flash just wide. The pressure was now intense and it was no surprise when a second goal came, though the manner of it was disappointing. Valois struck a speculative low shot from wide on the Luton right and it seemed to take a deflection off Perrett before Roger bundled it into the net in his attempt to keep it out. Lacey replaced Coates in an attempt to stiffen the midfield, but to little avail. The killer third goal came shortly after when a simple free kick move again involving Valois resulted in the diminutive Forbes heading home unmarked from close range.

The Swans kept their heads up & attempted to push froward as best they could. A neat move on the right resulted in a low cross from Williams being met at close range by Watkin, but he put the chance wide of Emberson's post. Shortly afterwards, a glimmer of light in Swansea's season appeared as Jason Smith made a welcome return to the side replacing the unlucky Sharp. This had a visibly calming effect on Roger & Bound, and it was not long before Smudger made an impact by charging 30 yards to make a terrific saving tackle on Forbes, who was again through on goal. Another crunching tackle shortly followed along with an excellent headed clearance and the sounds of 'Smudger is back' echoed around the ground. There was still time for a few more Luton chances, the best of these being a point blank header from Crowe which was saved magnificently by Roger - indeed so good was the save that the Luton striker made a point of congratulating him on it (easy to be generous when 3-0 up!) By the final whistle Luton were cruising, but the anticipated goal avalanche had at least been stemmed by some determined resistance and quality work by Smith and Bound.

Player ratings
Freestone - 7 At fault for the second goal but kept out several others
Howard - 7 a tidy performance at wing back
Phillips - 6 desperately out of position - we need him back in midfield where he belongs
Todd - 6 still developing but struggled a bit today
Bound - 7 kept the defence together whilst under siege
Sharp - 6 not a bad debut but definitely a baptism of fire, should improve with experience
Coates - 6 probed and prodded but to no great effect today
Casey - 7 looked our best player in the first half and was unlucky to be removed
Cusack - 6 did his best to hold things together in the middle but did not impose himself today
Tyson - 7 plenty of commitment and some good running with the ball
Williams - 6 a couple of good crosses but not a lot in front of goal
subs -
Watkin - 6 put himself about but missed our best chance
Lacey - 6 made little impression on Luton midfield
Smith - 8 would have been 10 if had been on more than 25 mins...glad he's back!

Addisons tactics - don't want to be critical but Phillips at wingback is not a solution, and the removal of Casey was very questionable. Having said that, we wouldn't fault his approach overall.

There was good support again for the Jacks today, about 300 or so singing throughout. Most of the support was positive although a few idiots tried to mix it with the Luton fans in the corner. It was a good ovation for the team at the end who left the field to the tune of 'We'll support you ever more.' This was never likely to be three points for the Swans and hopefully the players and management will not be down hearted with the result. They kept going until the end, maintained their energy levels and kept their pattern of play. The return of Smith is a real boost and hopefully we will also see the other returners making a contribution soon. Three points against improving Rushden is a must.

Now mind you don't drop it Jason

We needed to build on the welcome 3 points received against Darlington on Tuesday. Highflying Luton was not the best place to go next, and so it proved today. With Kris O’Leary out, starting a 2 game suspension, his place was taken by new signing from Merthyr, Neil Sharp. On entering the ground a strange sight met us. Now its been raining most days in Coventry this week, but 70 miles south it must have been the M1 Riviera, As the players went through their warm up session the pitch was being heavily watered, even during a short shower.

Last seasons result at Kenilworth Road saw us beaten 5-3, both teams were relegated, so today’s game can be a pointer to how both teams have fared. The result of 3-0 did not do Luton justice, it could have been double. The annoying fact is that the off field shenanigans is effecting what’s happening on the pitch. We never got into the game and to be only 1-0 at half time was a surprise. It owed more to the fact that Luton took time to see that the result was there for the taking. Their goal came from a Swans attack a long throw in which broke down on the edge of the Luton area, instead of attacking the second ball we started to drop back Casey being the nearest player, but a long ball forward found Crowe with acres of space to run into, with only Bound chasing, easily reaching the edge of the box placing it passed Freestone. Very little action in the first half, which was mostly half-hearted attacks from Luton and us defending deeply. Our only attempt on goal was a deep cross shot from Casey which floated onto the roof of the net.

Second half saw Watkin replace Casey, but this made no change to the pattern of play. Again we offered very little in the second half, which saw Luton dominate. Their goals again were more given than taken. Their second was a pass into the area from their right, flicked in at the near post with Rog only managing to help it into the net. The third, was a well-worked goal, but helped by bad defending. A free kick again on their right on the edge of the box was passed inside to a more central position, lobbed into the six yard box where a glancing header from one of their smaller players found the net. Further subs in the second half was Lacey replacing Coates and the welcome return of Smith replacing Sharp. Our only attempt of this half was a near post flick by Watkin going wide. A couple of mazy runs by Tyson showed promise but came to nothing

What can be taken from the game? Sharp did well in his first game considering the opposition. The big plus was the return of Jason Smith, who within minutes of coming on had put in 2 crunching tackles, and added some much needed pace into the defence. Note to the owners ‘ DO NOT SELL THIS PLAYER’.

Last season we had a recognised right back in Steve Jones, all that is history. This season we converted Jenkins into that role, he was starting to play well, but is now injured. For a couple of games Lee DeVulgt filled the position, but he has now been loaned to Merthyr. Today Phillips who has been MoM for his displays in midfield dropped back. His lack of pace gave us problems as well as missing his tenacity in midfield. To continue to play three at the back, we need wing backs that can cover the ground at speed otherwise we leave large gaping holes on the flanks. We currently do not have those players. Also the 3 central defenders need to be mobile, so as to be able to play sweeper roles. We only have Smith with the pace required.

Forgetting the off field position at the moment, what does the foreseeable future hold. Some of the youngsters might come good, but we cannot wait so without change of personnel in or out, we can see the strengthening of the defence with the return to fitness of Smith. The return of Jenkins to right back will help and free Phillips to return to midfield. Up front, we have Tyson for 1 more month, and then it’s a selection of Watkin, Williams and Sidibe. This leaves us very short of firepower, so with the a strengthened defence aided by the midfield we should stop leaking goals, the problem will still be to make enough chances for our forwards to score, especially as none are proven goal scorers. This depressing analysis can only mean there are worse times ahead. Stu Roberts left us while his form was improving and was turning into the goalscorer we were looking for. 100,000 pounds may seem a pittance come next May. It could have kept us out of the Conference.

Observations of the day rather than a report
The day started with a Sumbler pick up and then meet up with driver Matt Tossell in Baglan.

The 3 hr 15 min drive was punctuated by me doing some of my marking that's been hanging over me all half term, 5 answers to the 100 clue Times Jumbo crossword and various topics of discussion on the Swans!

Add to that some entertaining Jumpin' Jacks stories from Matt, and the journey flew by.

Upon parking the car, the first thing that strikes you in Luton is the ethnic composition of the community. A fair estimate of people on the street during our 1/2 mile walk to the pub was 95% asian.

A quick visit to a gents urinal near the ground revealed the tensions in that community (no not the tension on my bladder) with the grafiti showing pro and anti reference to Taleban, Osama Bin Laden, asians, whites etc.

Next stop was the Blue Something chip shop - which in the middle of this asian-uk set up - was run by orientals. Very nice chips but when Matt asked for a tray for his curry sauce, he was met with a blank stare which would have done Mike Lewis proud if asked, "Where has all the money gone?"

We were made welcome in a pub full of Luton fans and just before entering were greeted with a huge roar of approval as Leeds took the lead against some other team.

A chance to meet up with a few more listers - Phil, Lisa, Dai and Richard - and the Gigg entourage, Nigel, Becky and Sophie.

Off to the ground in search of comps where we were told Luton don't do that kind of thing :-( So it was £42 for 3 to get into the stand behind the goals.

A good turn out from Swansea fans and a chance to meet up with lots more listers - approx 30 I'd say. If I name them here, I'm certain to leave someone out - so you know who you are.

All eyes were focussed on the directors' box and with the aid of Dave Williams' camcorder digital zoom, we were able to ascertain that Lewis and ShuttleCOCK had turned up but no Petty.

This didn't stop the travelling fans from making their Petty out chants - but they lost the plot a little later when they began to confuse Petty with the Afghanistan situation. Apart from the sentiments chanted being disgraceful, they were also pathetic and the grown men who joined in with these juveneille ramblings, should be ashamed of themselves.

One thing that was noticeable was that although the community at large appeared only 5% white, the Luton support was almost 100% white! A strange juxtaposition indeed.

The match was eminently forgettable from Swansea's point of view and match reports of the "action" have already appeared.

I will however make some comments. Sharp coming straight in from non-league didn't look out of place in the back line, but the back line itself looked cumbersome with Gazza looking exposed for pace in his right back role.

This was a double handicap to the team as his effectiveness in midfield was sorely missed. As a team, the midfield sat back far too deep thereby surrendering the initiative to Luton from the kick off.

Our front men Williams and Tyson were a disappointment - but the service to them was poor to be fair.

I would prefer Tyson to have done his talking to the press after the match and not before, in relation to how he was going prove Luton wrong for releasing him as a teenager. Result: another one up for Luton.

Williams when he was at Cardiff a few years back was brought on for the final 20 minutes as it was recognised that at his age he couldn't be effective over 90 mins. Whether it's a case of having no one else (Sidibe amy be injured?) I don't know, but 2 years down the line his stamina has not improved.

Swansea made 3 substitutions in the 2nd half with varying degrees of success. Watkin came on at HT for Casey and made no real difference - as was the case with Lacey for Coates with half hour to go - but Smith on for the cramp-bound Sharp with 15 minutes left saw him earn my Man of The Match award for his short contribution.

His first tackle was superb but when he got up limping, it looked like a case of "back too early" again. But he ran it off and it remains to be seen whether he suffers any lasting reaction to this.

The final whistle from the dimunitive Paul Durkin put us out of our misery but the Swans fans stood and applauded long and hard despite having seen their team blitzed.

The journey back was uneventful punctuated with local delicacies such as bombay mix.

A call to the team bus revealed a despondent player, mooching over the poor result and performance, but judging by the high spirirts in the background, this was not a feeling shared by all.

A glimmer of hope - if Smudger is fit again (and I have my doubts) then his return will certainly improve things. If that happens, I think it imperative that we switch back to 442 and get in a recognised right back immediately.

Addison is reported to have said on radio after the match that people will be leaving and people will be coming in.