ADVER Sport assess the performances of the Swindon Town players following the club's 1-0 defeat to Sunderland on Tuesday night.

Connal Trueman: 6

Trueman had very little to do throughout, aside from a couple of routine saves. There was nothing he could have done about the goal, but became the first Town stopper this season to lose on his league debut.

Rob Hunt: 6

Any full-back would have a tough time against Aiden McGeady, but Hunt stuck in there and dealt with the tricky winger as best as he could.

Dion Conroy: 7

Conroy responded to an iffy showing against Northampton by showing his class and ability against Sunderland. Crosses rained in all night, but the Town skipper dealt with everything that came his way.

Tom Broadbent: 7

Broadbent was immense against Sunderland – aside from two moments that effectively cost Swindon a point. He gave away a silly free-kick for a trip on Wyke before losing the same man from the set-piece, with Sunderland’s number nine stealing in to score.

Jonathan Grounds: 6

What stood out to me was Grounds’ communication to those around him. His lack of pace was sometimes exploited, but overall the Thornaby man marshalled his teammates efficiently and stuck to his task nicely.

Matt Palmer: 7

Palmer was nice and aggressive throughout, and covered a lot of ground alongside his midfield peers. He tried to keep the ball as best he could, but those around him kept giving the ball away too easily. Subbed.

Jack Payne: 7

I thought the attacking midfielder showed tremendous energy and desire to disrupt, especially considering he must have been frustrated at not being able to get forward and create more. Not really his kind of game, but I liked his attitude.

Scott Twine: 6

Twine is becoming very clever at winning free-kicks, and he had three excellent shots go close again. The last-minute effort was stunning, but sadly it crashed against the bar. Set-pieces aside, he was not as effective as he can be in game where chances were at a premium.

Dom Thompson: 6

Once again asked to play in an unfamiliar position, Thompson showed his defensive instincts in abundance. However, Town rarely threatened in an attacking sense down their left. He also gave the ball away too easily too often, and regularly attempts the difficult option instead of the simple one. Subbed.

Jordon Garrick: 6

Garrick’s main contribution to the game was the number of fouls he committed. Though he did begin to bubble away a little more late on. His speed was a decent outlet for Town, but the lack of final ball is his next issue to overcome. I have no doubt he will as he’s already shown what a quick learner he is.

Brett Pitman: 6

Pitman was given between very little and no service all night, and as a result was unable to have much of an effect on proceedings before being replaced by Tyrese Omotoye. Subbed.

SUBSTITUTES

Hallam Hope: 6

Hope had Swindon’s best chance from open play but good goalkeeping from Lee Burge denied him. The winger made Town far more threatening going forward, but a point was not meant to be.

Tyrese Omotoye: 6

Omotoye suffered from the same problem as Pitman and barely fired a shot in anger – one blocked attempt aside. He could have grabbed himself a goal late on as Payne fired across goal, but he was on his heels instead of anticipating the trajectory.

Christopher Missilou: N/A

Missilou came on inside the final 10 minutes.