Year in Review | May
As 2019 comes to an end, we take a look back at the last 12 months for Swansea City. Here we take a look back at May.
On the opening day of the month, the Swans faced play-off chasing Derby County at the Liberty. A fine second-half performance saw the Swans hit back to share the spoils in a pulsating end-of-season encounter.
The visitors had the better of the first 45 minutes and deservedly led through Richard Keogh’s header.
But the hosts were much improved after the break and levelled when Wayne Routledge turned in the ball after Oli McBurnie’s header had been pushed onto the post.
The evening also saw Alan Curtis bid an emotional farewell to the Liberty before retirement with a guard of honour from staff and players of both clubs.
One of the greatest players to ever wear a Swansea shirt, Curtis also filled numerous off-field roles at the club over 40 years.
Known at the club as ‘Curt’, he played over 400 games for the Swans at the Vetch Field and scored 110 goals across all four divisions.
Curtis also went on to launch the club’s Football in the Community department and served as youth coach, head of youth development, first-team coach, assistant manager, loan player manager and caretaker boss.
Following his retirement from coaching, Curtis took up a new role as honorary club president.
In their final game of the 2018-19 season, the Swans faced Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park.
Courtney Baker-Richardson and McBurnie were on target but the Swans could not claim a first league win at Ewood Park since 1971.
Darragh Lenihan put the hosts ahead early in the game, but the Swans hit back as Baker-Richardson headed in Routledge’s clever cross, before McBurnie finished clinically from Matt Grimes’ free-kick.
However, Bradley Dack levelled within 90 seconds of the start of the second half as the season ended with a draw.
After guiding the Swans, to a 10th-place finish in the Championship and reaching the FA Cup quarter-finals, head coach Graham Potter departed the Liberty for Premier League side Brighton and Hove Albion.
Potter was also joined by assistant manager Billy Reid, coach Bjorn Hamberg and head of recruitment Kyle Macaulay at the Amex Stadium.
The departure saw the introduction of a recruitment board including Curtis and Leon Britton, with the latter taking up a new position as a football advisor to the board.
