“The step up from Under 21’s to League 2 has been massive” Swindon Town goalkeeper Murphy Mahoney on his first season of first team football

Murphy Mahoney admits that the step from Under-21s to League Two football has been a massive change for him.

After making the loan move from Queens Park Rangers, where he was playing primarily for the under-21s side, Mahoney has started every game for Swindon Town this season.

“The step up from under-21s to League Two football has been massive. There are many things which factor into this.

“The main things being, playing in front of bigger crowds, some matches we have 10,000 people watching and fans travelling across the country so there’s pressure to perform well to please them.”

The pressure obviously isn’t getting to Mahoney though as the 21-year-old has solidified himself as the starting goalkeeper at Swindon this season, already keeping four clean sheets in the process.

The QPR loanee is still getting to grips with first team football but welcomes any challenges as he sees them as obstacles to overcome and grow as a player from.

“I’m enjoying playing frequently and learning along the way how to deal with having so many match days in such a short space of time in order to prepare well and recover properly for the next match.”

Swindon started the season unbeaten in their first nine games but since a 3-1 loss to Notts County at the start of October the Robins form has been far from ideal with only one win in six in the league and a shocking 7-4 defeat to National League side Aldershot Town in the FA Cup.

“As a team we had a great start, we went 9 games unbeaten and were performing well as a group. As a team, the results and performances have slowed down as of late.

“However, as a group we’re determined to stick together and continue to work hard at training during the week in order to give ourselves the best chance on a Saturday.”

Mahoney emphasises that regardless of recent results the squad are determined to stick together and regain the form they were in at the start of the season.

“The mentality is still strong within the group despite recent results as we know if we stick together and work hard that we will get back on track and pick up the form we had early on in this season.”