Can Bristol City's additional experience overcome Swindon's youthful vigour in M4 derby? By a_stockhausen please log in to view this image Bristol City skipper Wade Elliott will attempt to bring his experience to bear on Saturday's top-of-the-table clash at Swindon Town. Bristol City will encounter something out of the ordinary when they travel the short distance along the M4 corridor to tackle League One promotion rivals Swindon Town on Saturday – a team younger than their own! Much has been made of City’s youthful aspect this season, especially following a summer recruitment drive which saw manager Steve Cotterill sign five players aged 26 or under. In keeping with the club’s policy of recruiting players whose value is likely to increase, it seems reasonable to assume that, for a majority of the current Ashton Gate squad, their best years still lie before them. The introduction of Academy products Joe Bryan and Wes Burns has served to further lower the average age of the side which, when at full-strength, currently stands at 25.9. But that is nothing compared to Swindon’s likely starting line-up at the County Ground this weekend. Robins boss Mark Cooper is expected to field a team brim-full of youthful exuberance with an average age of just 22. Swindon’s innocence and relative inexperience is reflected in the way they have played this season. Cooper’s charges have produced a free-spirited, expansive brand of football which has yielded a notable return of 32 goals from 16 League One outings. Quite simply, Cooper’s charges are prepared to risk losing in their quest to win games, something that can also be said of Cotterill’s City side. Indeed, there are quite a few similarities between the West rivals, notably an ability to entertain and score goals that is central to their ethos. Equally, both sides have found difficulty in keeping clean sheets and closing out games when in front. The one major difference is to be found in the loss column, City having put together a 16-game unbeaten run in League One, while Swindon have already suffered three defeats. Long-time Town watcher Sam Morshead, now joint head of sport at Swindon Link Sport and a former reporter for the Swindon Advertiser, referred to a “high-risk” strategy” when I spoke to him this week. He told me: “This Swindon side is very good at keeping the ball, manoeuvring the opposition out of position and creating goal-scoring opportunities. They are a very young side and have no fear. “The flip side of that coin is that they are also a touch naïve at times and have problems when it comes to defending. Because of the way they play, there is a trade-off between attack and defence which makes games extremely open. “I definitely cannot see it being 0-0 on Saturday!” Age comparison between Bristol City and Swindon Town based on the likely line-ups this weekend: please log in to view this image Aaron Wilbraham: Bristol City striker unrelenting on goal target. Our twin pillars of experience. VIDEO: Take an alternative GoalCam look at Aaron Wilbraham's brace against AFC Wimbledon. [video=youtube;mwqdZy3wxoM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwqdZy3wxoM[/video] http://www.bristolpost.co.uk/Bristo...nce-overcome/story-24518516-detail/story.html
