7:10am Thursday 2nd September 2010
By Anthony Marshall
ALAN Sheehan has returned to the County Ground to deal with unfinished business, as he bids to help Town achieve his Championship dream.
The full-back, pictured below right, completed a transfer deadline day switch to Swindon on Tuesday, signing a one-year contract, and it is a welcome return for a player who had a successful loan spell at the club last season.
Sheehan had set his sights on a move to the second tier of English football, and there was some interest in the 23-year-old. But a transfer never materialised, and the Irishman is determined to reach that division with his new employers.
“I’m delighted,” he said on being unveiled to the press yesterday.
“It gives me a chance to come back here and finish what we started last year and I don’t see why we can’t have as good a season as that again.
“Yes I could have gone to a Championship club, but for whatever reason that didn’t happen. I’m down here now though and happy to be playing.
“That’s the reason why I signed here - because I think we have got a chance of getting into the Championship, and if we don’t play as well as we did last year then I will be very disappointed. You have to aim high.
“I wouldn’t be signing here with the objective to stay in League One. We’ve got a great bunch of players here and more than enough to go up.”
Sheehan faces competition from summer signing Michael Rose and youngster Callum Kennedy for the left-back berth, but is unconcerned at the amount of competition at Town.
“No matter what club you go to you are going to have players fighting for every position,” he said.
“I am expecting it to be hard and I have got a lot to prove again.
“Nobody is guaranteed to be on the team sheet - it is up to yourself to play well and get yourself into the team.”
And while Sheehan may not have game time under his belt yet this season, there is no doubt the former Leeds man is fit and raring to go.
“It’s been a difficult few months for me with going into Leeds and just running every single day,” he said.
“There were a couple of us who were like outcasts.
“We weren’t really wanted there and were training with the Academy boys, but you’ve just got to go in there, run, keep your head down, and train all hours.
“But that’s all done with now though and I’m here to play for Swindon.
“It’s good just to be playing football and to be coming back to a club which is hopefully on the up.”
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