Swindon Town are still searching for their next head coach more than 130 days since Michael Flynn departed, so who should they be looking at?

Cards on the table, this was not a part of the “Building the Town” series that I had envisaged writing, simply because I had expected the position to be filled prior to this point. Looking back that feels like a surprising thought, but here we are, I shall weigh in with some thoughts.

Previously when I wrote about potential options, I had expected a change in direction from the club, but based on the known targets like Dean Brennan and other names that I have heard there was interest in, I believe the footballing philosophy might be continuing.

Honestly, that makes suggesting candidates slightly more exciting as I will be largely searching for those who play a more exciting style and can introduce a bit of excitement to the club. These suggestions will be in a very different mould to that previous list. With no current names being circulated or bookmaker's favourite, I shall be working from scratch, but these are four candidates that I would consider if I was Jamie Russell, Clem Morfuni, et al.

Someone I would be looking at is Jim McNulty. The 39-year-old has had a tough start to life as a manager, leading a Rochdale side that has been spiralling in recent years, but he has managed to stabilise the club in the National League. Despite finishing in mid-table, when it comes to a possession-based style they were up there with the top clubs, working with a young squad that is similar to Swindon’s. The Brennan approach implies at least a willingness to poach a coach and the former Brighton defender has shown himself to be a strong up-and-comer.

Another slightly rogue shout would be Noel Hunt. Having learned underneath Richie Wellens as Swindon’s assistant manager, he has gone on to have a lot of success with the youth team at Reading. Wellens trusted him enough to take Swindon’s EFL Trophy games back in the day and he could be someone looking for a step into senior football. I could be blindly hoping that he is just Wellens mark two, but he does have a strong track record as a coach and if what the Swindon hierarchy is looking for is an Irish former Swindon coach then may I suggest this one instead?

A potential restoration project I believe has the tools for success is Kevin Betsy. Despite having a tough time at Crawley Town, it was a madhouse during his time there and he still created a team that played in the style that Swindon are looking for. He was seen as a very exciting hire two years ago and former England youth coaches have ended up having a lot of success in the senior game. If he has learned from his experience at the Broadfield Stadium then he is someone that I think could produce an exciting team to watch and improve the players Town have.

I also feel duty-bound as someone with both Swindon and Bath City ties to bring up Jerry Gill. Battling against professional sides in the National League South, he has taken the Romans to the playoffs three times in six full seasons at Twerton Park whilst implementing an attractive style that has also been consistently defensively sound. However, Gill has been willing to become more pragmatic when the time comes. Most importantly of all, he has shown a willingness to demand more vocal support from the fans, a trait that has served Swindon’s most successful figureheads of recent times well in Wellens and Harry McKirdy.