Joe Acklam

Sports Journalist

Swindon Advertiser •

'Are we expecting miracles?' Physio on what caused Town's injury struggles

There were a number of issues at Swindon last season, but a key reason for their struggling form in the second half of the campaign was a flurry of injuries.

Across the campaign, only Connor Ripley and Fletcher Holman did not deal with any injuries, whilst seven different players had hamstring injuries, as Ian Holloway had to manage lots of churn within his squad, with players coming in and out.

To find out what might have gone wrong, The Adver spoke to Paul Godfrey, who was Di Canio’s p...
Swindon Advertiser •

Holloway's impact, meditation, and going full Terry: Smith on his time at Town

Having been the main man as Swindon fought back from bottom in December to an outside chance of the playoffs at Easter, everything was built around the gigantic goalscorer over the summer. The thought of signing another striker like him was discarded by Ian Holloway, because why would he? They would never play with Smith in the team.

And then, four league games into the season, all of that was totally thrown off, as the striker chased after a long ball and collided with Barnet goalkeeper Cia...
Swindon Advertiser •

Palmer pivotal to Swindon's plan to overcome the top sides in League Two

Swindon’s record against League Two’s elite has been a talking point across the season, having taken only three wins from their matches against the present top seven sides in the division.

It has been a theme that sides who try to go toe-to-toe with Swindon have caused them problems, as was seen again during the first half against Barnet on Tuesday night. However, Town managed to turn that match around using their quality and speed in behind to disrupt The Bees and pick up a vital three poin...
Swindon Advertiser •

'As good as I have seen' - Wolves U21 boss on Holman's 'superpower'

For Swindon’s fourth addition of the January transfer window, they landed their Paul Glatzel replacement with another forward, who, whilst predominantly a striker, is capable of playing on both wings.

Having initially impressed at Eastbourne Borough, which earned him his move to Molineux as a teenager, and shown flashes of his talent with Solihull Moors, Holman joins Swindon to help provide another attacking option.

A player with a lethal eye for goal and the pace to get in behind teams,...
Swindon Advertiser •

Swindon Town seeking transfer for Grimsby Town winger

The aggressive start to the summer from Swindon in the transfer market is continuing as they are looking to bring Vernam across from Blundell Park.

Amidst all the early business, Town are yet to address their attacking options in the market, and Ian Holloway is hoping to rectify that with a move for Vernam.

Speaking to parties at both ends of the deal, The Adver are aware that Swindon are hoping to wrap up a deal for the 28-year-old on a permanent basis to add another profile of attacker...
Swindon Advertiser •

Misun Persons Report: The transfer that never happened

Whilst the two sides look to find a new gear at half-time, two new faces are paraded around the pitch. The first is the first winner of Samsung’s Win A Pro Contract competition, Jordan Pavett. Alongside him is a man who just two years ago was attracting interest from AC Milan before joining Celtic. Milan Misun.

Under fire manager Danny Wilson is looking for something to kickstart a Swindon side that have won just twice in the last two months and just yesterday lost their talisman in Charlie...
Swindon Advertiser •

Swindon Town repeatedly paid police and ambulance late

Responding to Freedom of Information requests, Wiltshire Police and the South West Ambulance Service Trust [SWAST] have revealed that the club were repeatedly late with payments during last season.

When asked about these late payments, CEO Anthony Hall explained: “We have been late with payments, we acknowledge that and have had to lean on our suppliers this season as it has been difficult.

“We have a payment plan worked out with Wiltshire Police to make these repayments which we have be...
Swindon Advertiser •

Pre-season and torture with Paolo Di Canio at Swindon Town

That is Paul Caddis describing pre-season with Paolo Di Canio on the Under the Cosh podcast. His pre-season training sessions have become something of a legend in Swindon Town circles with how hard he liked to drive the players. Countless former players of that era have spoken about the extreme restrictions and methods that helped create the side that would win the League Two title in 2011/12 and were on course to do the same in League One the following year.

“That was definitely the hardest...

British Football

The London Warriors have been around since 2005, originally starting out as a youth outfit in the Croydon area, before starting a senior side in 2007.

They were three-time national champions at youth level before moving on to the senior game, where they have been crowned British champions on six occasions in 15 years.

Simon Buckett is their General Manager and has been with the team since they moved into the senior game and has seen an upturn in interest over the years.

He said: “When we star
South West Londoner •

Michael Doughty: from winning leagues to saving trees

Michael Doughty was a professional footballer for ten years, playing in the Premier League with QPR, but walked away in September 2020 to pursue a sustainable trainer company.

Hylo Athletics, a project he first began a year before leaving football, is a trainer company looking to promote greater sustainability in sport.

Hylo looks to make shoes in a more sustainable way than traditional brands, making its trainers using 60% bio-content.

It also boasts a Life Cycle Assessment number, which tak