WES Foderingham has paid tribute to the part Swindon Town goalkeeping coach Domenico Doardo has played in his development at the County Ground.

Since joining the Robins on an initial loan deal in October 2011, Foderingham has become the first name on manager Paolo Di Canio’s teamsheet thanks to a string of fine performances which have received acclaim from Swindon fans, pundits and even national selectors.

The 22-year-old has been watched by England Under 21 coaches on numerous occasions and is rated as one of this country’s brightest young number ones outside the top flight.

Bearing all that in mind it would be easy for Foderingham to forget to credit those who have helped him behind the scenes, but he was quick to praise Doardo for the knowledge he has imparted during the pair’s 15-month working relationship.

“He pays attention to a lot of the minor details just like the gaffer does, and before the game he will come in with a piece of paper and show us what foot players use and what kind of strikes they have,” he said.

“I haven’t really had that from any other goalkeeping coach, and he looks at set pieces and where they have shot, and from penalties especially we saw last season against AFC Wimbledon when Phil Smith saved a few penalties.

“He does his homework and tells us which players shoot where, and it makes you look like the hero even though he is the unsung hero. “Everyone gets to see us on the pitch taking the glory, but it is not just the gaffer and the coaching staff there are a lot of other people behind the scenes who do not get enough attention.

“When I first came here I was a bit shy and nervous in the opening games, but it is hard for a young keeper to come into the league and play games early doors and it is not something everyone does well in.

“The start to my Swindon career was really good and hopefully this season I can keep it going, and in terms of me developing I have come on leaps and bounds so I just need to keep working and hopefully get us into the Championship.”

Foderingham believes he is in the best form of his life at present, a justified remark given two sensational saves in the 1-1 draw at Bournemouth on Saturday.

Martin Thomas, the man in charge of England’s up and coming goalkeepers, was in the crowd for the 4-0 victory over Carlisle on January 5 and Foderingham remains on the Young Lions’ radar despite turning 22 on Monday.

However, the stopper said he had not received any personal contact from the national setup just yet.

“At the moment I am enjoying playing well and I think I am back to my best form again and I kept four clean sheets in a row, even though I didn’t have much to do in a few of the games,” he said.

“There are other aspects to the game, and I made good saves and my distribution and catching crosses was good, and I made a few good saves (against Bournemouth) when conditions weren’t good.

“I haven’t actually spoken to anybody and nobody has contacted me even though they have been to watch me, and Martin Thomas has spoken about me after one of the games.

“It is nice they come and watch me and to hear your name mentioned around the under-21 squad is great, and if it happens that would be great but I am concentrating on Swindon.”