Flynn Downes | We want to mark the return of fans in the best possible way
Flynn Downes wants Swansea City to mark the return of the Jack Army to the Swansea.com Stadium by picking up maximum points against Preston on Saturday.
Following the easing of Welsh Government restrictions owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, supporters will be back at the home of the Swans for the visit of North End in the Championship.
It will be six weeks since the Swans last played in front of a home crowd following a series of postponements, and having to play the FA Cup third-round tie against Southampton behind closed doors due to the raising of the Covid alert level in Wales.
After such a long time, midfielder Downes is eager to get back in front of the home fans, and give them the perfect return.
“I cannot wait, and it’s not just me, we missed having the Jacks in the stadium for our last home game and it’s been a long time since we’ve played in front of them,” he said.
“It has felt like an age and the best way for us to mark their return is to get three points for them, and that’s what we will be going out there to do.
“You could see at the end at Huddersfield how behind us they are and the difference they make. Like I say, I cannot wait to be back in front of them at our place because we want to kick on.
“I think it was a massive second-half performance at the weekend, against a team who are up there in the table, and I cannot imagine many teams have gone there and done that to Huddersfield.
“We dominated long spells, so we need to kick on. This is an important month and we know we need to start picking up some wins.
“But we showed good character, we believe in what we are doing and how we play. It’s a matter of time and you can see that, when we get things right, we are capable of being a very good side.
“The challenge now is to keep doing it, and keep hitting those levels.”
And goalkeeper Ben Hamer echoed Downes’ sentiments.
“The fans were excellent at Huddersfield, as they always are, it was great to see them enjoying themselves,” he added.
“We enjoyed the effort they made to make the long trip, and we appreciate it and we cannot wait to have them all in our own place next week because it was not the same without them in the FA Cup game."
