MIDFIELDER Anton Rodgers has promised personality on the ball after becoming Swindon Town’s first summer signing.

As reported by the Advertiser on Tuesday, Rodgers put pen to paper with the Robins on Monday and joined Mark Cooper’s men at their boot camp in Hampshire during the week, playing against Petersfield and Eastleigh before Town formally announced his arrival yesterday.

After the 2-0 pre-season friendly defeat to Eastleigh last, Rodgers told the local media what he hopes to bring to the club and his thoughts on fighting his way into the starting line-up past the likes of Massimo Luongo, Yaser Kasim and Louis Thompson.

“They’re all fantastic players and it’s going to be healthy competition,” he said. “That’s what football is about, it’s about competitiveness and I’m looking forward to it. It’s about training hard, working every day and when you get your place you take it.

“I’m good on the ball, I like to set the play up and try to get the boys playing. I try to encourage the boys to keep playing. It’s just personality on the ball.”

The son of Liverpool boss Brendan, he was released by Oldham at the end of last season, having rarely featured for the Latics in League One. He made 14 appearances for the Boundary Park side following his arrival last summer.

Previously, the 21-year-old came through the ranks at Brighton & Hove Albion, where he trained under Town assistant coach Luke Williams and alongside the likes of Yaser Kasim, George Barker and Raphael Rossi Branco.

Rodgers’s introduction to life as a Swindon player was a trip to the Thorney Island navy camp for four days of intense training.

He said: “I actually went on one last season so I thought I’d avoided it this season. It’s been great to be fair. It’s straight in with the lads and I’ve got my initiation out of the way as well, which is good.

“We came out looking at the camp as a positive thing.”