SWINDON Town manager Richie Wellens believes injecting energy and confidence into his attacking players will naturally help the club’s defenders play with more freedom.

Town scored three goals for the fifth time this season when downing Stevenage 3-2 at the Energy Check County Ground on Tuesday night, thanks to Sol Pryce’s brace and Scott Twine’s first-half marker – which ended a three-month winless League Two home spell.

Wellens himself admits the information he is passing onto his strikers can make it difficult for him to ‘slow down’ his work on the training ground.

Despite this, the 38-year-old wants his forward players to breathe confidence into his back four by increasing their clinical threat in front of goal – which was perfectly demonstrated by both Twine and Pryce in midweek.

Wellens said: “I’m giving so much information at the moment, it can be difficult for me to slow down.

“For example, when we clear the ball, our defence isn’t good at coming out – we need to get that five or six yards.

“I’ve been working so much on attacking play, because the most difficult thing in the game is to score goals.

“If we can get that and make sure our movement and timing is right, then we’re going to make a lot of chances.

“If you know your strikers are going to score, it can give your defenders a lot of confidence.”

The performance in midweek not only injected life into Town’s front pair, but also energy into the grandstands.

A quiet and subdued County Ground atmosphere prior to kick-off did little to make the new Town boss feel at home ahead of just his third game in charge since being appointed as Phil Brown's successor earlier this month.

However, that soon changed when Pryce scored the quickest goal of the century for Town when netting after just 18 seconds after Stevenage lost the ball from kick-off.

Wellens added: “When I walked out just before kick-off, I didn’t like the feel of the place.

“It was very quiet and subdued – but 18 seconds later, that was different.

“It’s down to us to try and lift the atmosphere. Performances like that will make the fans sing more and make for a better atmosphere.

“There were so many good passages of play, and that gave the supporters a lot to shout about.”

Positions in the first team are far from secure, though, with Wellens set to re-introduce the suspended Elijah Adebayo this weekend in Town’s FA Cup second round tie against Woking.

Jak McCourt, Marc Richards and Toumani Diagouraga are all well on the road to recovery after respective injuries too.

Improving the physical strength in his younger players is one key area Wellens will look to build on.

He said: “Results happen only through experience and time.

“When I was footballer of 20 or 21, I got tired and I wanted to come off – that’s what they’re like.

“They will only get that experience when they keep getting tired and keep going through it, physically they will improve.

“And the better they are physically, the more they will improve on the mental side of things.”