Sheehan sees progression in Swans despite defeat against Middlesbrough 

In an improved performance by the Swans from their midweek showing in Staffordshire against Stoke City, Sheehan’s side held their own against a Boro side that had been in the Championship play-offs in May. 

The Swans though despite having chances for Josh Key, Bashir Humphries, Liam Walsh and Jay Fulton in the first-half would fail to turn their dominance into goals as they would fall behind at the interval. 

Sam Greenwood scoring just before the break for the visitors, which Sheehan would later call a ‘sucker punch’ to his side. 

To the Swans credit, they fought well to come back into the match with Walsh at the forefront of the play and deservedly equalised through Jamal Lowe’s diving header – his fifth strike of the season.  

With nothing in the second-half, however, it would be small margins that would see a win for either side and Middlesbrough would get the three points, all be it slightly controversially according to Sheehan.  

The Irishman would be unhappy about the decision to penalise Carl Rushworth for picking up a pack-pass. Boro’s Samuel Silvera then would benefit from the resulting free-kick smashing through a body of players to score the decisive goal of the afternoon. 

“I feel gutted for them [staff and players] because we deserved to win that game today,” said Sheehan. 

“You could see a team giving everything for each other, we were unfortunate to go in behind. 

“Today I thought in the first-half we were really good, and I think the game should be done, but we got hit with a sucker punch. 

“We showed character to get back into the game. To lose like that from a crazy decision, whether it was right or wrong is a big call. It is a brave decision from the referee. 

“Is it an interception or a back-pass? Carl Rushworth is one of the best keepers in the league with the ball at his feet. For him to think he can pick it up tells me enough. 

“We spoke about giving the fans a performance to get behind and I spoke about a possession-based team that wants to attack fast. I think for the first-half against a good team that was in the play-offs last year you could see that.  

“You see a team in the first-half playing a possession-based game, playing high intensity, playing attacking football in numbers and getting crosses in the box. It is just that final bit we were lacking. 

“We had a better result against Stoke but today I was happier with the performance, if we play like that, nine times out of ten, we win the game. 

“If I’m being critical, we could have been more ruthless and put the game to bed in the final third. 

With Chris Davies deciding to stay at Tottenham Hotspur last night as assistant manager, the search for the next Swans head-coach will continue this week.  

For pragmatic Sheehan, it’s now continuing the process of moving the club in the right direction until a new permanent number one is appointed. 

“All I want to do is put the club in a better place. Any manager watching the game today coming into the club will be thinking we have something to work with here,” continued Sheehan. 

“It’s a process. We know where we want to get to, and we know where the football club has been. We want to get back and I’m sure the club will get the right guy. 

“I’ve been in successful promotion teams, and I know how it feels. Sometimes everything just clicks, and you can go on a run, we’re not a million miles away and I think we showed that today against a side in the play-offs today. 

“If you want to play like that, you have to train a long time. It’s progression, not perfection, but hopefully, people can see what we are trying to do today and relate to that. 

“In my position, maybe it should be game result over game model, but I believe if you get your game model right you go on big runs in the Championship, and I feel today was a step in the right direction.”