Martin Paterson | It was a good workout but the hard work does not stop

Assistant head coach Martin Paterson felt Swansea City took another step in the right direction with their work on and off the ball in the 5-0 friendly win over Swindon Town.

Goals from Nathan Wood, Joel Piroe, Liam Cullen and a Josh Thomas brace gave the hosts victory on a blustery afternoon at Fairwood.

Defender Wood opened the scoring when he steered in a Josh Key pull-back just before the interval.

Strikers Piroe and Thomas then struck in quick succession early in the second half, with the latter later going on to complete his double, after Cullen had finished at the back post, while the Swans kept a third clean sheet in a row.

New signing Jerry Yates got a planned 30 minutes under his belt, with Key playing 45 minutes against the Robins.

A number of opportunities and goals came from the Swans pressing effectively high up the pitch and striking quickly in transition.

And, while there is plenty more work to be put in in the remaining three weeks before the big kick-off, Paterson believes Michael Duff’s side are continuing to make positive strides.

“That was a really good workout for us physically and we have got another clean sheet, which is really important for the defensive line, but also for the team as a whole because everyone must defend,” he said.

“Then we go and score five good goals as well, which is really pleasing.

“I think for us, the most important thing today was that even though the game did not go our way early on – Swindon competed and made it a really tough game for us – we came through that period.

“We made sure we stayed in the game and then we went on and our quality shone through, but off the back of a good structure and real hard work.

“The players should be satisfied, but that hard work without the ball is something we expect as a staff. It’s really simply, everyone has to work hard and defend for the team.

“A couple of goals came off the back of that, but we know it’s not the finished article, there are improvements to come in that area too.

“We know this group has got individual quality, and when you piece together those combinations, and we counter press and win the ball high up the field, we have got pieces on the board that can really hurt teams.

“That aspect of keeping the ball out of our net and putting it in theirs was very good today.”

Paterson was also pleased by the progress the Swans squad is making in terms of conditioning, but has promised the hard work will not stop before Birmingham visit the Swansea.com Stadium on August 5.

“We are happy because the gaffer has put them through some really tough moments so far in pre-season, because he feels it is important to stress them, and they have come through that with great mentality,” added Paterson.

“It’s almost more of a mental test than a physical test, and they have come through and I thought we looked fit today.

“But there are three weeks to go, and that work does not stop, we will continue to ramp that up.

“We’ve had a good workout and this is another step in the right direction to improving.”