SWINDON Town’s lacklustre season hit a new low last weekend as a 1-0 defeat at Colchester United leaves Phil Brown’s side down in 17th in the League Two table.

Once again, the manager’s starting 11 left the majority of Town supporters both in Essex and at home confused as neither Steven Alzate nor Keshi Anderson were selected, again settling for places on the bench.

Similar to the club’s trip to Notts County a week earlier, it was those two players who brought Town to life in the second half.

However, unlike at Meadow Lane, Brown’s late substitutes couldn’t rescue the situation and the result leaves Town in one of its worse league positions in 35 years, and makes fans consider even more why our club is lacking any sense of direction.

With no word coming from chairman Lee Power during this terrible run of form, it makes you wonder how bad must things get before he pulls the trigger on Brown’s time at the club.

Would losing this weekend to Conference North side York City in the FA Cup prove to be the end? In most circumstances, the chairman would relive the manager of his duties.

But I wouldn’t expect a change in the hot seat for a while, regardless of results.

With Brown signing a two-year-deal to take over on a permanent basis over the summer, I doubt the chairman would shed out more money to end his contract and rectify the poor decision he made in May.

Thankfully, Town can spend some time away from league action as they host the Minstermen at the County Ground in the FA Cup first round this weekend.

Swindon’s recent record in the FA Cup has been abysmal, with our most recent venture in the competition ending away at Stevenage after a 5-2 defeat in last season’s second round.

After such a long run without any cup success, an exciting run of results in the competition would give the club a chance at bringing back that big game feel to the County Ground.

As attendances continue to drop week after week, progressing in the cup could liven up our dreary campaign by bringing wandering fans back and giving the clubs loyal fan base something to cheer about this season.