Swindon Town were facing a bleak future last season before Ian Holloway arrived. Sitting 22nd in League Two, just three points above the relegation zone they were in trouble until the charismatic Bristolian took over and guided them away from danger to 12th, winning 16 and drawing 11 of his 37 league matches in charge.
This has led Swindon Town to give him a new three-year contract, taking him to June 2028.
62-year-old Holloway is one of only 26 English managers to manage over 1000 games. He has managed a number of clubs during his long career, most famously Blackpool, who he took to the dizzy heights of the Premier League in 2010.
Although they were relegated after only one season, the team were praised for their togetherness and attractive style of play. Now Holloway is working his magic at Swindon, and this is how he is doing it.
The Importance Of Team Bonding At Swindon Town
When Holloway arrived at Swindon Town in October 2024, he found a group of disengaged players, clearly talented, but with no togetherness.
‘What surprised me was where they were when I saw the skill of the lads and also how they weren’t a group,’ he told the Swindon Advertiser.
Holloway’s whole ethos is about empowering his players to take responsibility for themselves, and each other.
‘Going in and making people accept responsibility, not just for themselves or what they have done in a team situation, but how to help someone else around them and not being selfish.’
It is an attitude that he expected from his Robins players from day one, but he was shocked by what he found. He highlighted the case of defender Pharrell Johnson, who had had an operation on a serious leg injury, and was facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines.
‘Not one of my team rang him and asked how it [the operation] went,’ he told the Advertiser.
‘Not one of them, not the captain or anybody.‘
‘So I hammered them: “That is a disgraceful attitude, why aren’t you caring about him?”
‘To be honest, I think that was the turning point.’
This new cohesion created optimism, and Swindon went from fighting relegation to coming within just ten points of the playoffs.
This validates Holloway’s belief in the power of team spirit.
‘There’s a lot of power to create a supportive environment in that if you can empower someone to understand they can make a difference,’ he told BBC Points West. ‘Particularly then they all start doing it and then you’ve got something that feels a lot better than it was.’
His positive attitude was ingrained at his first club, Bristol Rovers, who he played for over 100 times.
‘They helped me learn a lot about life, the senior pros. They helped me be a pro, taught me how to be a real one, to communicate with everyone else in a way that is honest.’
Swindon’s ambitions will no doubt be higher this season because, at time of writing, the team is sitting second in League Two, tied on 15 points with Gillingham and Walsall, having won five of their first seven league matches. This is down, in part, to the new sense of togetherness that Holloway has created within his team, but it is not the only reason.
Swindon’s attacking threat
Holloway is not just a great motivator, he is also a great tactician, and the evidence of this can be seen in how he has revitalised Swindon’s attack. He has helped players like midfielder Dan Butterworth to become more ruthless in front of goal, and this has increased Swindon’s goal threat.
His preferred setup is 4-4-3 with an emphasis on width and keeping his wide forwards advanced, thereby stretching the play and causing the opponents all sorts of problems.
Sometimes he tweaks that formation, changing the 4-3-3 into a 4-2-3-1 to facilitate attacks on stronger defences.
The catalyst for improving Swindon’s strike rate came last season. After a 4-0 defeat away at Colchester in December, Holloway changed his approach against their next opponents, Fleetwood Town.
He encouraged the players to keep things simple: keep the ball in Fleetwood’s half and press their midfield. The tactic worked and the Robins won 3-1.
‘I tweaked things around a little bit and made it a lot harder for us to make a mistake, and a lot easier for us to force mistakes from them,’ he said after the game.
This new approach has borne fruit. The team’s confidence has grown as they have adapted to Holloway’s tactics, and they now have one of the most feared attacks in League Two.
Game Changing, Perhaps?
This could be a game changing season for Swindon Town. After years in the doldrums, and some signs of fan unrest last season against the owner Clem Morfuni, things are looking up. With Ollie at the wheel, things can only get better.
Where do you think Swindon Town will finish this season? Let us know in the comments below!
