By Albatross
September 13 2005

Has the corner been turned? Or has it papered over the cracks? Only time will tell, but the weekend win over Blackpool was welcome nonetheless. There are still plenty of questions that we are waiting for the answers for. Well, we snatched victory from the jaws of defeat, and with three points in the bag things look a little rosier at least. Saturday raised plenty of questions, but we're three points to the good and no amount of questioning will change that fact.

The big thing now though is what happens next. Scott dropped a number of players from the 16 on Saturday, two of them his new signings, but is it a case of a kick up the backside or is it something deeper? Lee Bullock, Chris Llewellyn, Gavin Strachan, Ben Clark and the apparently recovered Darrell Clarke were not involved. Instead we had four teenagers alongside Provett on the bench - three of them still qualified for the Youth Team - and another youth teamer in Maidens (previous first team experience: coming on as a sub against Crystal Palace last season) starting on the right of midfield. Will the youngsters still be in place against Swansea on Saturday? Or will at least some of the more senior pros be included on the bench?

While some people may be concerned about the lack of senior players, I'm less concerned about who plays than how they play. If the young players are good enough, why not give them their chance - and for Scott, who stated his unhappiness with some senior players against Yeovil, picking them has the double advantage of them being hungry for the chance to make an impression, and knowing them well from his time looking after the youth team and also the reserves. If some of the older ones are unhappy with the situation - well, that's Scott's problem, and providing we can pick up the points any grumbles from the fans will soon subside.

Swansea will travel to Pools offering a big threat, and it will be yet another stern test of Scott's management skills. After blasting seven past Bristol City the Swans are hungry for more: and the fans at least feel they owe us several after being humiliated at the Vic a couple of times in the recent past.