Swindon Town youth team manager Alan McLoughlin aiming to unearth 'a gem or two'

The 49-year-old took over from Scott Lindsey, who joined former Town manager Mark Cooper at Forest Green Rovers in the summer, and is relishing the responsibility of overseeing Swindon's youngsters.

“I love the role of development football. I did it successfully at Portsmouth and managed to get lots of players in and around the first team while I was there,” the former Republic of Ireland international told the Advertiser.

“My job is identify talent and hopefully, by the end of the year, the club is in a position where we can have something for these players.

“Some of them aren’t ready at the moment, but they might be in a year’s time. Hopefully, when they leave me at the end of the year, they’ve learned something along the way.

“It’s about finding a gem or two. It isn’t just about the U18s. We have a whole academy of players, who will take the club forward, enhance the first team environment and make the club a few quid along the way.”

Having previously held a similar role at Portsmouth, the Town legend admits it is a different scenario since taking over from Lindsey.

“We were in administration at Portsmouth and the club had to listen to what we had to say,” said McLoughlin.

“They (Swindon) had a great guide last year in Scott Lindsey, but I have tried to be a bit more pragmatic with the players in terms of their roles and responsibilities without the ball.

“That’s another side of football which is sometimes neglected.

“It has been a steep learning curve for them and for me, but I see some good things and I see some bad things – that is development football.

“I’ve got a great academy manager (Jeremy Newton), who provides the support, and we do the best that we can within the confides of what we can do. We do our best with what we’ve got and there is some talent here.”

The youth team are back in action on Saturday when they welcome Plymouth Argyle to Stanley Park in Chippenham (kick-off 11am).