SWINDON Town manager Phil Brown said a first clean sheet of the season was the most satisfying aspect of today’s battling 1-0 win at Morecambe.

Town turned in a gutsy defensive effort at the Globe Arena, having to play with 10 men for more than an hour following Kyle Knoyle’s red card shortly after Elijah Adebayo had fired the visitors in front.

Swindon responded to that with grit and determination to see the job through in Lancashire, with on-loan defenders Luke Woolfenden and Sid Nelson particularly impressive alongside goalkeeper Luke McCormick.

Brown has been appealing for a “clean sheet mentality” from his side all season, so was delighted to see that come to fruition against the Shrimps as Town made it five League Two games in a row unbeaten.

“The three points, of course first and foremost (is most pleasing), but the clean sheet and that mentality,” said Brown.

“I took a real chance on two young lads playing centre-back, and then that was upset but the red card.

“I knew Luke Woolfenden could play right back, so it was a case of Olly Lancashire going in there, but you can see clearly that Olly is going through the pain barrier.

“He is not quite right and I am feeling for him because I had to have one of the toughest conversations I have had at Swindon when you’re leaving your captain out for a 19-year-old boy from Ipswich.

“Then everything gets upset and he gets embroiled in a battle where we have got to try to see it through.

“But it wasn’t just a case of seeing it through. Strangely, we probably had the best chances of the game either before we scored or after we scored.

“I thought the red card upset them too. I thought they were playing decent football and all of a sudden they start dithering on the ball.

“It gave us an opportunity to get our discipline and our shape back, which we did do. I am delighted for the younger lads and the lads at the back.

“If we had scored a second goal, we might have conceded one, that’s how daft it is.

“You go 2-0 and 3-0 up – which we could have done and should have done, if truth be known – you then go a little bit lax.

“The lesson is stay on it, right until the 95th minute, which they did, so that is the pleasing part.”

Brown had no complaints about Knoyle’s dismissal, which came for a lunging challenge on Aaron Wildig on halfway after 35 minutes, with the Town chief stating that he has been encouraging the young right-back to be more aggressive with his defending.

“Not really (any complaints), it’s just the way the game has gone,” said Brown.

“In my day that would have been a yellow card and you are on tenterhooks for the rest of the game, but he has gone in.

“I am taking responsibility for that because I have said to Knoyle, there are opportunities for him to tackle, but I think is a thing of the past, it is definitely out of the game.

“I have been pushing him to go in, he has been holding out, so I will take the blame for the red card.”