Dixie Robinson believes future is bright for Shiels’ Swifts

The Swifts may find themselves at the bottom of the Danske Bank Premiership but Robinson feels new boss Dean Shiels has plenty of quality in his squad.

The hosts pushed Coleraine all the way on Saturday, twice pegging them back, with Robinson full of praise of their efforts.

“For the new manager coming in, the second half and especially down to ten men, there’s a lot to work with,” he said

“Credit to the players because they showed great character .

“There’s a good bunch there, probably a wee bit of inconsistency, but we’ve blooded a lot of young players.

“They’ve shown the new manager today what they’re capable of, sticking together, be united, work hard.

“There’s enough quality there.

“But at the end of the day it’s another defeat and we’ve got to change that mindset, we’ve got to win more games.

“Dean’s had a fantastic career and hopefully he can past on a lot of that knowledge and especially to the younger players.

“He has a good group to work with and I’m sure he’ll be well pleased with what he saw today.

“Hopefully now he’ll come in and galvanise the boys and change our fortunes in terms of results.”

Shiels had a watching brief on Saturday before he officially takes over the reins tomorrow.

The former Rangers man is looking forward to the challenge ahead with the Swifts.

“It’s great, I’m delighted to come in and I’m looking forward to the challenge ahead,” he said.

“It’s a great here, there’s a great platform here for players to go and perform and improve.

“They’ve a lot of young players and a lot of exciting talent here and I’m excited to work with it.”

With no relegation this term Shiels hopes the players will have the freedom to go and express themselves in the remaining fixtures.

“You would hope so,” he said. “You would expect the shackles are off, players wanting to express themselves.

“Obviously it’s a surreal season but at the end of the day personal pride has to come into it.

“No one wants to finish bottom or second bottom and hopefully we can start by getting a few results.”

Shiels can obviously call on his father Kenny and brother-in-law Oran Kearney for advice if needed.

“I spoke to Oran before I took on the job,” he said.

“Obviously I’ve got my father and different people in the game and I’m close to David Healy.

“They are people that have been here and worked around the league. Good to have them if I need them.”

READ MORE:

Check out our Danske Bank Premiership Team of the Week

Rangers’ journey back to the top of Scottish football

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