ForzaSwansea Exclusive: The Lee Trundle interview!

After my interview with Alan Curtis proved popular among ForzaSwansea readers, I hunted down another Swansea City legend for an exclusive chat - Lee Trundle.

The former fan favourite striker was a prolific goalscorer for the club, notching up 83 goals during 166 appearances over two stints. But it wasn't just his goals that sees him dubbed a star - his confidence, charisma, club pride and, of course, his big bag of tricks really did it for Swans fans!

He remains with Swansea City as the club ambassador and a youth squad coach, though he was kind enough to take some time out of his busy schedule to meet up and give us an exclusive interview about his current role, his past games and other footballing issues. Enjoy!

Lee in his new role as club ambassador

Chris Carra: So, you've settled into your new role as club ambassador - how are you finding it?
Lee Trundle: It's brilliant. Obviously when I was a player I used to try and get out to as many things as I could, like schools and hospitals, but now it's part of my job and this is what I do day in, day out and there's nothing better. I've always loved mixing with the Swansea fans so to have that as my job now is a dream come true.

CC: You do the match day hosting too don't you?
LT: Yeah, I do the match days up in the lounge, but my main day-to-day stuff is going out and meeting people. I've been out to a soccer school this morning and that was brilliant. I'm always really busy - every single day I'll be working in the morning and afternoon. I'm over at the club shop this afternoon, so I'm always doing something.

CC: And you still play football from time to time?
LT: Yeah, I play in Liverpool for my two local teams, where I grew up. When Swansea are away it gives me chance to travel back. Because I've got a young daughter in Liverpool it gives me a chance to go back and see her and my family. So if I'm back I'll have a game for the local teams as well.

CC: I'm sure I heard you signed for a team in Swansea too?
LT: I had signed for Brunswick, but I needed international clearance to play for both, so I never played a league game for them.

CC: Moving back onto the Swans - it hasn't been the best of seasons. It was great being in Europe, but it's been a really poor league performance. What was behind everything falling apart?
LT: I think the Europa League has taken its toll. We haven't got the biggest squad and the extra games were tough. Although we loved the experience of being in Europe, and I think the Swansea fans did as well, I think it's the same thing – every team that's in the Europa League always struggle in the [domestic] league. They always find themselves in the bottom half, most of them, so I think that played a massive part in where we were this year. It's a lot of travelling and it takes its toll in the end.

CC: When you were a player, what was your favourite game with the Swans?
LT: It would have to be the Millennium Stadium final (vs Carlisle United, April 2006), with the early goal and winning the cup and everything that went on – it would have to be that one.

CC: And the worst you played in?
LT: That would probably have to be... the Barnsley play-off final (May 2006), getting beaten on penalties. Although I was subbed that game, I'd done well myself but just the feeling of getting beaten that way, I'd never felt like that in any other Swansea game, even when I'd played my worst.

CC: Who is your favourite player to watch in the squad at the moment?
LT: Obviously Wilfried Bony has been brilliant and for me he has been my player of the year this season, but my favourite player is Leon Britton. To go through the leagues and to still be outstanding in every single division that you are in, you have to be a class player to do that.

CC: Who would be your ideal dream summer signing for Swansea?
LT: If it was a dream one it would have to be Ronaldo – definitely. People go on about Ronaldo and Messi, but for me Ronaldo has got more than Messi.

CC: That would be a great addition! What about a realistic signing?
LT: When I think of signings I always think of strikers, because they are the ones that win you games. A striker would be good, with the cloud over Michu because he hasn't played much this year, but... it's a tough one...

CC: Finally - who's going to win the World Cup?
LT: I'm going to go for Brazil. I'll support England, but for me England are the same every year – they've got great individual players, but they don't seem to click. For me, if I was Roy Hodgson, I would play Liverpool's system. I would keep the Liverpool players in and then just put Rooney where Suarez is, because I think their system has worked well this season. It's attacking, so I'd go that way if I was him.

CC: Being the half Italian stallion that I am (or maybe more of an Italian donkey?), I will be passionately supporting Italy. How do you reckon they will fare?
LT: Yeah they are a strong team and with the World Cup it's hard to call really, because until you see the first couple of games and you can see how the teams are, it's difficult. For me I think Germany have got a chance, I think they're very strong. It's the same teams all the time – Belgium as well, they have quality players but it's how they work together.


A big thanks to Lee for taking the time to speak with me. If you want to read more about his career and life as a Swansea City star, check out his book - More Than Just Tricks.

Swans On Film: "Don't F**k With The Swans"

While browsing Swansea City videos on YouTube last night I came across this infamous one featuring the club's beloved mascot, Cyril the Swan.

In the late 90s, after Cyril was fined for removing the head of Millwall's mascot Zampa the Lion and drop-kicking it, he was interviewed for a Dutch documentary about the Swans with amusing results.

I think the funniest thing is hearing Cyril's voice, which is undeniably Swansea, through and through!

Meanwhile, stay tuned for a special announcement in a few days time! Elsewhere you can follow me on Twitter or like the blog on Facebook. And make sure to check out my other successful blog - Swansea On A Plate!

Swansea City: Player of the Season candidates!

With the end of the season approaching, several Swansea City players are holding their hands up for the Player of the Season award. Our blogger MATTHEW JACOB is giving us the rundown of who he believes makes up this season's shortlist!

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By Matthew Jacob

It's that time of year when Swansea City fans can start mulling over their nominations for the club's player of the season - a time to celebrate individual brilliance, and reflect on what has been a pretty tiring campaign for fans and players alike.

This season the Swans have journeyed all over the continent, from Newcastle to Naples, via Malmo and Manchester. I believe we as fans generally accepted that it was going to be a long hard year, arguably the hardest since we were promoted to the Premier League.

Nevertheless I felt confident. The squad had quality and Michael Laudrup had worked hard to bring players in to improve us. But it has been a tough year for Swansea and our battle against relegation hasn't been a welcome one.

I've been witness to some truly woeful performances by the boys this year, but there have been some real memorable moments as well - beating Valencia 3-0 on their own pitch, taking Napoli right to the wire over two legs, knocking Manchester United out of the FA Cup, getting South Wales derby revenge in style and picking up a few decent league results along the way. See, it hasn't been all doom and gloom!

After all has been said and done, plenty of players stood out and rose to the occassion when we needed them to. But who has really shone? Who should be our player of the season?

Here are the Forza Swansea contenders:

Ashley Williams
Not at his best all season but where would we be without the captain of Wales? With Jordi Amat showing promise and Chico Flores putting his budding career as a Wham tribute act before his football this season, it's fallen to Williams yet again to lead the boys through some particularly difficult moments this year. He was superb against Napoli in particular.

Pablo Hernandez 
I think many of the Jack Army were starting to lose patience with the Spaniard before Monk employed him behind Bony as a more central attacking force. Clever in possession and excellent on the ball (if lightweight off it) he started to show this season why we splashed over £5million on him. Could be a big player for us next season.

Wayne Routledge
Mr Consistency according to Monk. When Rodgers signed the former Palace, QPR, Newcastle (I could go on) star I was dubious, but the Irishman said then that Routledge had the ability to get the crowd on their feet and he's done so again this year. Great performances against Cardiff and Norwich stand out and he has chipped in with six goals this term.

Ben Davies
The young Welsh talent has show signs of fatigue in recent weeks as a long season draws to a close, but he has continued to build his burgeoning reputation as one of the best young defenders in the league, even showing real promise in attack as well as composed in defence. There'll be summer interest for sure.

Wilfried Bony
What more can we say about Daddy Cool. Huw Jenkins admitted to feeling a little wary about splashing £13million on a single player, but every single penny of that cash has proved to be money well spent. Bony has scored over 20 goals for the club this season in all competitions, 13 in the league. His attacking quality really came to the fore in the second half of the season, but he has also proved himself an important asset at defensive set pieces and, for me, we must hold onto him for at least another year at all costs.

Bony is priced at 100/1 to be the top goal scorer at the 2014 World Cup and his performance in Brazil is likely to influence his future at the Liberty Stadium - www.tipsontits.co.uk are tipping Ivory Coast to qualify from Group C and, with a fairly easy looking group, Bony and his team could do well!

Honourable mentions go to: Leon Britton, who again has proven himself a key man for us and will be nigh on impossible to replace in the next few years. Nathan Dyer, who's been very unlucky with injuries and Jonjo Shelvey, a real character who works tirelessly - a key asset for us going forward.

I know who gets my vote, but who gets yours? Comment below or tweet me on @OriginalMattyJ to let me know whether you agree or disagree with the selections.

Let's back the boys in these last few games, cross the line together, and focus on next year.

2013/14 - The final four predictions!

It's almost over - and not a moment too soon! With just four important games left to secure survival for a faltering Swansea City, our former Swan ALEC JOHNSON takes one last look at what we can expect, and shares his score predictions.

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By Alec Johnson

Before we look forward to the final four crucial matches, let's briefly take one last glance at last Sunday’s encounter - the 1-0 loss to Chelsea.

After starting so brightly and competing for possession, our tempo and movement gave us real hope of picking something up from the ‘bonus’ game that nobody expected anything from. We won every challenge for the first 15 minutes, except the two that Chico lost. How cheap they were and how expensive they could be.

The Terry and Jose anger tactics played the part necessary to see our pantomime villain sent off once again. What happened next was a mistake in my opinion - hauling off Pablo (who had started with real purpose) and leaving Dyer on (who had started poorly) was an own goal in itself. The logic I get - keep the pace and hard-working runner on - but I felt we needed the form player to sit in the middle and hurt when necessary. We lost, but not without heart and spirit.

So where does that leave us? A strange bag of results threw my ‘super six’ predictions off course and the blew the bottom wide open. We are now a game away from level points in the trap door.


Newcastle United (away) - Sat, 19 April

First up, a trip to Newcastle. St James Park isn’t what it used to be. The Geordies have turned on Pardew showing their lack of appreciation for the punchy cockney with a set of banners last weekend. Their form is poor having lost the last four, while their record of lowest goals scored and most conceded in the top half isn’t a proud medal to carry.

Therefore it’s all about the start. If we get at them early on and unsettle the crowd, breaking the confidence, we can get a grip and win by a couple as we did last season. I do feel that there will be a reaction and a fight, but I cannot see us getting beat, so I will throw in a nervy 1-1 draw. Probably something that both clubs would take before of the game.


Aston Villa (home) - Sat, 26 April

Next up is Villa at home. The away fixture over Christmas ranks as one of my most frustrating in recent years. We battered them for 80 minutes, keeping almost 99% of the ball and the Jack Army were awesome from start to finish. We deserved better, but took a point. This is payback and I believe we can boss this and hurt them at home, hopefully through our three winger approach, which is so effective at the Liberty. I will go for a 2-0 win, edging us towards safety on 37 points with two games to go.


Southampton (home) - Sat, 3 May

Are they on the beach yet? Some are already at the World Cup and going through the motions. On their day they can be devastating and I do feel that they will be up for it on their last away game of the season. Assuming we have collected the four points from the previous two fixtures, I can see us losing this one as they play with freedom and flair. So it’s a 2-1 defeat in my eyes, leaving a nail-biting finish.


Sunderland (away) - Sun, 11 May

The finale! I haven’t considered the other results going on around us but I assume the bottom three will consist of Sunderland, Norwich and either Cardiff or Fulham on the final day. Wouldn’t it have been great to go to the Riverside leaving Sunderland win to send Cardiff down? I would have celebrated each goal flying in past Vorm.

However, given their run of games and shocking form I think they will be down before kick-off. That can only help us, so I see the Swans picking up something and celebrating survival - an ugly point or three will do nicely sitting on 38 points, or even the targeted 40. I'm going for a 2-2 draw.

Then we can all breathe and regroup, before a summer that will undoubtedly see considerable change at our beloved football club.


Agree with Alec? Or dare you disagree? Leave your own score predictions below! And make sure to follow Alec on Twitter.

Just a note...

Hi everyone, Chris here (that's Chris Carra, who runs the blog, not the former Swans midfielder from the early 80s Chris Marustik... in case you somehow made the wrong connection...).

Just a quick note to say we haven't had a blog post up for a week or so because I've been tied up working on a project that's taken up most of my time, while the other bloggers have also been busy with their own things.

But fear not! We will be back with blog posts very soon! In the meantime check out some of the archived material or have a look at some other brilliant Swans blogs on our links page.

Thank you and see you soon!