Swindon Town have now added a tenth permanent arrival this transfer window by sealing a deal for Bournemouth midfielder Gavin Kilkenny, who had made 25 appearances for the Premier League club and spent the second half of last season on loan at Fleetwood Town.
The 24-year-old was capped 12 times at under-21 level for the Irish National Team with his last appearance coming in June 2022 and he played 14 times as the Cherries were promoted from the Championship in the 2021/22 campaign.
Irish Midfielder Finds New Home After Promising Loan Spell at Fleetwood Town
It was a difficult campaign in League One for Fleetwood Town as they suffered relegation to the fourth tier but despite the club’s dreary outlook, Gavin Kilkenny impressed across 16 appearances. The former Stoke City loanee was deployed in a deep-lying role in front of the back for most of his appearances and put in a match-winning display in a 4-2 win over Wigan Athletic.
He played the entire 90 minutes and with his side trailing 2-1, provided the assist for Bosun Lawal’s excellent goal to level the scores by collecting the ball from just inside the opposition’s half before advancing into a threatening position and laying off to his fellow countryman who finished the move off in style.
Gavin Kilkenny then put his side in front after half-time as his shot from outside the box was deflected goalwards to give Fleetwood Town an impressive win over the Latics. The midfielder became a vital component of the side who finished just three points from safety, with the team picking up just one point from the two fixtures that Kilkenny was absent.
He averaged 1.9 successful tackles per game, 0.9 interceptions and was comfortable in possession for a side that was struggling at the wrong end of the League One table. The midfielder was happy to make the move to Swindon Town, telling the club’s official website:
“It’s great to be here. It’s been in the works for the last couple of weeks and I’m now delighted to get it done.
“It felt like it was the right stage of my career now, with the age I’m at, it just felt right and I needed a new home and now I feel like it’s time for me to make this place a permanent home for me.
“First and foremost, I just want to work hard for the team and be reliable, put in a shift and I like to get on the ball and get the team playing and I feel like I can bring that to the team.”
Swindon Town Upgrade Midfield After Difficult Start
It has been a tough start to the new season for Mark Kennedy’s team, who are winless after three outings and suffered a 4-0 defeat in their only home match so far against Walsall. Their midfield three has struggled to impact the game and with the departure of a midfielder reportedly sanctioned, the Robins needed to add to their squad before the deadline.
Kilkenny appears tailor-made to be successful at this level after his displays in League One and the promise that he showed in his 13 starts for the Cherries in their promotion-winning campaign. No player in the Bournemouth squad with more than three appearances had a higher pass completion rate and his average of 2.3 successful tackles per game was second in the club’s charts across the entire campaign.
The Irish midfielder is precisely the type of player Swindon Town need to tighten up their midfield and garner a sense of control as they seek to improve on a disappointing start that has yielded just two points from three games. They face Notts County at home in League Two this weekend.