If only life was as simple as having no bad news ? And when we had that news it would always be something positive to end with ? Earlier today we received a note from the coastguard in Falmouth that an old bottle from many years ago had been found. In this bottle was a note, a scripture if you like and on closer inspection it came from Jack Butty.

It merely said to whom it may concern, pass this to my future friends at Swansea Independent. Hard to believe ? Well here is the proof. Please note this text is reproduced with the permission of the family of Jack Butty, all of whom have passed away. We would like to thank Mystic Merv ‘ the man on the curve ‘ a ‘psychic’ late of Skewen for assisting with this article and for his future help contacting Jack Butty if he is indeed on the other side of the road.

‘I’M STICKING WITH YOU CAUSE I’M MADE OUT OF GLUE’

The Swans have been on a terrible run (4 wins in the last 24 games). High pressure in the modern game, when the rewards from success are great and the costs of failure too, frequently sees managers/coaches sacked for such poor form. Not surprisingly there have been calls for Russell Martin to be sacked. The reasoning varies from: the need to stop the rot and have an incomer oversee and assess the squad before the summer transfer window opens; to the need to stop the rot so as to avoid relegation and the risk of the Swans tumbling down the leagues which, as we know from experience, has happened before.

I don’t buy this and I am for sticking with Martin. Let me be clear the last two seasons have been difficult for Swans fans with a massively leaky defence — often from playing the ball out from the back and losing it; an attack that doesn’t score enough goals so that too often fans have been biting their nails to the quick with the Swans desperately, and not always successfully, hanging onto a one goal lead. Performances have been up and down with consistency an issue. However, it’s clear that Martin is a man with vision that he doggedly believes in. Some people find this being arrogant as he doesn’t appear to accept criticism or to be learning from his mistakes.

An alternative point of view is that he has to show self-belief because if he were to doubt himself then that would transmit itself to the players, staff and the owners and everything would fall apart. There have undoubtedly been some dire performances. The 4 nil defeat to Burnley at Turf Moor sticks out for me - not so much the defeat but for the lack of fight that the team showed. However, it is also clear to me that most games there have been many passages of play of high quality. Importantly the playing squad buy into Martin’s footballing philosophy and value the support given to them by Martin and his team. He is a principled man working to the brief given to him and his team, on their appointment, to return the Swans to the footballing style that took us to the Premier League in 2011.

First with Brendan Rodgers and then under Michael Laudrup to play the best football that most of us have ever seen a Swans team play. Since then there has been a steady deterioration while successive managers tried to avoid relegation and sacrificed our unique footballing style. It also appears that the brief included developing players so that the squad could be improved and be in a position to sell players to support club finances. Aligned to this was the work of the Academy, playing the same football style, to provide a production line of local talent into the first team squad. There are signs of progress and it seems that the owners also see this. Martin has an eye for a player and was instrumental in bringing in Flynn Downes who, after one season, was a big bit of transfer business to West Ham. Nathan Wood and Harry Darling have grown well in their first season with us. Luke Cundle was checked out by the Swans before his loan from Wolves and has added energy and spark. Andy Fisher has had a difficult start and will need to fight for first keeper spot.

Joe Allen may seem like a sentimental return but there is also a hard edged decision made that he will add greatly to midfield once his fitness is sorted out. While Liam Walsh was a revelation on Sunday and feels like a new signing with so much to prove. So on balance mostly good incoming players who I expect to be stronger next season. Keith has repeatedly said that sacking Martin wasn’t going to happen if only because the cost would be too great. The owners have backed him and appear to acknowledge the lash-up of the January transfer windown came down to them. Martin has been reassured that this won’t happen again and said at last Friday’s presser that if he didn’t believe that he would have walked on 1 February.

Martin has said many times how much he and his team love the area and its people and they have a commitment to see this club develop. Added to this is that if he fails at Swansea then that wouldn’t look good for his managerial CV. So he is backing himself, the club are backing him and I expect him to be here next season.

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Photographs supplied by Mystic Merv

johnjubal1958 added 13:04 - Mar 24 If he pulls off the derby game to made it a double double then they might just give it to him!? Depending how the rest pans out again they might give him a chance next season but there is to much inconsistence that makes Swansea City a below mid table club and I'm not convinced we can move forward with Russell Martin. If I were to make the call he'd be gone already. I'm just happy I don't have to!

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