STEVEN Benda hasn’t once questioned Swindon Town’s ability to win games in League Two without outstanding goalscorer Eoin Doyle.

Town’s on-loan goalkeeper was understandably disappointed to learn that Irish striker Doyle had returned to his parent club Bradford City on Wednesday.

But at the same time, the German threw his weight behind Jerry Yates to continue his excellent run of form in front of net.

Yates’ goalscoring spree has without question gone under the radar as a direct result of Doyle’s freakish ability to find the back of the net this term.

The Rotherham striker has scored 11 times – averaging one goal for every two games he plays in – despite often being deployed as a wide player by Town chief Richie Wellens.

Benda added: “We know we have a good team even without Eoin (Doyle), we proved that against Bradford City.

“Jerry (Yates) is a proven goalscorer. It will be tough, but I am sure we can cope without him.

“We don’t know if he will come back, but we’re ready for anything. Facing Eoin in training has been brilliant.

“He is a great goalscorer, and it makes it hard for me – everyone has been able to learn from him.”

It is extremely unlikely Benda will be recalled by his parent club Swansea City this month, with the Championship club thrilled by the German’s current role between the sticks amid Town’s push for promotion from League Two.

This year has been one of learning and new experiences for Benda.

Not only is he playing in front of hostile crowds, but he also had to deal with a ruthless run of fixtures that saw Swindon play four games in 10 days over the festive period – some that is completely new to the 21-year-old.

He added: “It’s different this year, but I use fans’ noise as motivation – I want to show those away fans what we can do and hopefully silence them.

“I’ll talk to the goalkeeping coach (at Swansea) – he will ask me how I’m doing and feeling, they watch my games too.

“Other than that, there isn’t much conversation. It’s more down to myself and Steve (Mildenhall).”