Match report

Swansea 1-0 Darlington

A good crowd of 5,553 again proved the board's decision on pricing to be right, and the atmosphere was definitely noisier than at the last home game.

There was only one change from the team that started at Rushden, with Kieran Durkan stepping up in place of Williams.

All any of the fans could have hoped for tonight was a repeat of the fighting performance put in at Rushden last Saturday, with the only change of plan being a 3 point return at the end of 90 minutes.

The first half, throughout, did not provide too much in entertainment value, but again there was some passion and spirit in the performance, which generated some equal emotions from the crowd.

We were creating some chances, and Britton and Martinez had a good shots on goal early on, which were saved by the Darlington keeper.

The midfield was again looking more solid than at any time in the season so far, and there was, at the same time, urgency and calmness about the way that they were approaching the game.

Nugent and Thomas up front, with Thomas playing in a definite central role, worked well off the ball to try to create openings, but some loss of possession and some less than ideal finishing saw us having difficulty in making the breakthrough.

The referee seemed far from accurate with many decisions, and he was without doubt very lenient with the rather aggressive methods that the Darlington players adopted to halt some of the Swans' moves. They were a very physical side, and the flow of yellow cards that their players received could easily have turned to red.

Discipline is one area that we certainly seem to have improved and only Martinez (for dissent) found his way into the referee's book tonight.

For the second game running, a rather listless first half was heading for a goalless ending, but just 7 minutes before the break, a Durkan cross found Nugent who struck the ball against the post before forcing it across the line to put us ahead. This was Nugent's 4th goal in 4 games, a strike rate we have not seen for some time. It was a great time to score, and the game was there for us provided we did not sit back for the second half, content to accept a one goal advantage.

Shortly after the re-start Nugent left the field through injury to be replaced by Watkin.

Thomas did miss an excellent chance to put us two up, and the game out of Darlington's reach, but his header went wide of the goal when really he should have scored.

Wood was the next replacement to come on, this time in place of Thomas who despite his greater effort and fight, is still having a lean time up front. Surely the time will come when a goal will get his confidence back to where it was earlier in the season. The sooner the better, as he and Nugent could form a fairly formidable partnership in front of our new midfield trio.

With three substitute strikers used in the game (Williams eventually replaced Durkan), we had seen Willo, Watto, Tommo and Woody, as well as Nugent, form a variety of striking partnerships and it is still a bit of a worry that we do not seem to cause defences enough problems in the game.

We had three shots on target in the first half and six in the second, which is only one every ten minutes throughout the game, and several of those came from midfielders. We need to up this strike rate if we are to reduce our goal difference which could still prove crucial at the end of the season.

Watkin showed a few nice touches during his spell on the pitch, with the highlight being a great through ball for Jamie Wood only for Woody to lapse into the role of Buzz Lightyear, and blast the ball to infinity and beyond.

An excellent goal line clearance by Howard late on ensured that we took all the points from this game, and at last we are on a three game unbeaten run.

We are certainly playing the type of football needed to fight our way out of the position we are in. We do not need fancy football, and we didn't get much tonight, but we do need and did get 3 points and that is all that matters now.

The inevitability of relegation which many had started to accept now seems a bit premature, and our survival will be down to our ability to produce this type of performance in every remaining game. Closing down the opposition whenever we can, and having the confidence to have a shot at goal will determine our future and we think we have the players now to do that.

Tate had a far more solid game tonight, and controlled his area well with Smith. Their understanding seemed improved on recent games.

Johnrose and Martinez have added the dimension of “if I lose the ball, I'll fight to get it back again”, and others are responding to this.

Durkan was a littler slow and reluctant to take on his man on the flanks. He can cross the ball, but need to get to the by line to cause more damage. No real evidence of pace in his game. Wood doesn't have the first touch of some players, which takes the edge off his ability to get into space. The full backs were fairly solid and looked to go forward more than of late.

However, it was Britton who shone throughout the game and his level of commitment, skill and effort was superb. He was easily man of the match, and is our brightest beacon on our journey through the basement escape tunnels.

Flynn has proved true to his word in being able to utilise his contacts, and maybe, just maybe, we will continue the climb away in the next few games; don't take your fingers too far away from the panic button just yet. Patience and calm from the fans, and continued solid performances from the players and management, that's all we need.

• Freestone - 7 - Solid and dependable, but kicking was a nightmare and he's looks in pain as he kicks out. 
   
• Evans - 7 - Decent game and coped well under pressure.
• Howard - 6 - Looks much happier with Johnrose playing in front of him. 
• Smith - 7 - Captain's performance, dealt well with everything. 
• Tate - 8 - Outstanding, composed, assured and oozing class. 
  
• Johnrose - 7 - Doesn't do a lot of running, but what he does, he does well. 
• Martinez - 7 - Looks composed and tidies up well in front of back four.
• Britton - 9 - Brilliant again. One fault is his generosity in passing to colleagues blessed with 10% of his ability. 
• Durkan - 6 - Nice crosses, but unwilling or unable to take people on. 
  
• Thomas - 6 - Battled throughout and deserves a goal soon. 
• Nugent - 8 - Great battling performance. 
  
  Subs
• Watkin - 6 - Never looked look scoring but held ball up well and played a few good balls through for colleagues.
• Wood - 6 - A couple of good runs, but lacked composure when anywhere near the goal.
• Williams Not on long enough to judge.