Sil Swinkels is the latest Aston Villa youngster looking to use a loan spell at Bristol Rovers as an opportunity to develop his craft as a senior footballer, following in the footsteps of Lamare Bogarde and fellow current loanee Lino Sousa.
The 21-year-old had to be patient for a first start in blue-and-white quarters following his arrival on deadline day last month. However, a couple of strong defensive displays from the bench, coinciding with the bonus of goals against Stockport County, on debut, and Rotherham United, made it difficult for head coach Inigo Calderon to continue leaving the Dutchman out of the starting lineup.
Swinkels’ 72nd minute header from the bench against Rotherham looked to have saved his team a point at the very least until the Millers threw a sucker punch in the form of an added time winner. Not only did Rovers lose the game, but it was their third consecutive defeat as their advantage above the relegation zone stood at just two points.
It sounded the alarm bells and Calderon pulled the emergency handle, making the decision to swap to a back-five with Swinkels coming in to add extra support to James Wilson and Connor Taylor.
Two weeks later, the Gas have collected seven points from nine with morale-boosting home wins against play-off chasing Huddersfield Town and Bolton Wanderers, kept two clean sheets and widened their advantage above the bottom four to a comfortable nine points.
“I’ve had to work really hard,” Swinkels declared, speaking to local media to reflect on his first five weeks in BS7. “Connor Taylor and James Wilson have been really good. They’re very solid. Every game they deliver. So for me to show myself and obviously at the Rotherham game and a couple times where I came on before that.
“So in those games and on the training pitch, day in, day out, I’ve just had to work hard and fight for it. And then to now, working with a back-five and to come away with two clean sheets and then the last few wins, I think it’s shown that we’re a strong side now and hopefully we can just keep building on it and keep getting my games in.”
Swinkels’ debut was a bit of a rabbit in the headlights moment as the defender came on for his first senior league appearance in a brand new environment with his team 1-0 down to one of the best sides to have visited the Mem this season in Stockport County.
You would assume that the brief from Calderon was to keep things tight with Rovers still having a foothold in the game. Scoring the equalising goal probably wasn’t on the Dutchman’s mind.
“I certainly see it that way,” Swinkels added when asked if his two goals have been a bonus. “It’s obviously not what I came in for but every goal that I can get or every chance I can get or where I can maybe get my head on it then I’ll try and do so and try and help the team in as many ways as I can whether that’s a clean sheet or a goal, It’s just whatever helps the team.”
Aston Villa’s youth setup and Bristol Rovers have formed somewhat of an allegiance over recent years. It started with the Villans’ double swoop of Gas teenagers Kyrie Pierre and Bradley Burrowes back in 2021 while Swinkels’ move to the Mem is the fourth loan deal to be agreed between the two clubs since 2022.
Swinkels’ fellow countryman and long-term teammate Bogarde made 36 appearances for Rovers over the course of two half-season loan spells. The midfielder impressed in the second half of the 2022/23 campaign, returning for the following season but ended up heading back to Villa prematurely after an underwhelming period back in north Bristol.
However, similarly to Liverpool’s Jarell Quansah, a mixed loan spell in League One doesn’t necessarily mean you aren’t cut out for the top level with Bogarde breaking into Unai Emery’s side with Villa at the peak of their modern day escapades after reaching the quarter-finals of the Champions League earlier this week and still in the hunt for an FA Cup title and a top-four finish in the Premier League.
The now-21-year-old has made 16 appearances for the Villans’ first team this season, four of which coming in the Champions League. Although he is currently focused on finishing his loan spell with the Gas strongly, seeing his friend’s successes this season will offer Swinkels, and other Villa youngsters, hope that they too can replicate Bogarde’s achievements.
The only time he got on the pitch for Emery’s side this season was in a League Cup tie at Wycombe Wanderers but the defender had been on the bench for a handful of Premier League and Champions League matches prior to his arrival at Rovers. But breaking into the first team back in Birmingham isn’t on the 21-year-old’s mind right now.
“It’s a difficult question,” Swinkels replied when quizzed how close he is to becoming a first team player at Aston Villa. “Obviously, right now I’m focused on this and I just want to do well here. But the experiences that I’ve had at Villa over the past couple of years and especially the last couple of months have been unbelievable.
“Being on the bench in the Premier League and Champions League is amazing and I’m just trying to get as much out of this loan as I can and then see where I’m at in pre-season. Hopefully I can prove myself there and see where it will go, whether it’s another loan or I’ll be staying around. It’s up to the manager.
“I think it’s up to me to make that decision as hard as possible and show that I’ve improved as a player during my loan spell here.
“Lamare has done amazing. Obviously, I know him very well and when Bristol Rovers came in for me I spoke to him quite a bit about it and he said how it helped him so I’m just trying to do the same for me.
“To see him take his opportunities this season has been amazing to see so yeah, hopefully I can follow his footpath.”
You would be forgiven for not immediately picking up on Swinkels’ Dutch roots if receiving the pleasure of getting into a conversation with him. The centre-back speaks impeccable English and has also adopted a bit of a twang along with a few slang phrases as a result of England being his home for nearly five years.
While playing for Vitesse Arnhem’s youth teams along with Holland’s Under-16s, a 16-year-old Swinkels was spotted by Aston Villa back in 2020 and he and his family were subsequently invited to Birmingham to assess whether a move would be the right decision.
Admittedly, it was not the most straightforward of times to be making such a major life decision at such a significant age. England was starting to come out of the first lockdown with two more eventually on their way but an affection for English football helped make a teenage Swinkels’ mind up.
“Obviously, with Covid it made things quite difficult because when I came I was 16. It’s not easy because, especially at the start, obviously with Covid, not seeing your family for a couple months in a row and you’re just playing football. But everything outside of football is closed as well.
“I wasn’t driving at the time either and I was in a host family, so all of a sudden your world becomes very small. But I think because you’re so young and everything is so new, you’re just enjoying the occasion and you’re just taking it in as it is.
“Also because it was in my first year here, I didn’t know otherwise. I didn’t know what it was like if everything was open. So I just took it as it is but [it] certainly became much easier when everything opened up and you start enjoying just everything around it and starting to see a bit more of England and yeah, it just makes it a lot easier.”
Although he would still be based back in Holland with his family and friends if it wasn’t for football while he was also cheering on the Oranje when Aston Villa teammate Ollie Watkins scored a late winner to send the Three Lions through to the Euros final last summer at this home nation’s expense, Swinkels now sees England as a sort of home away from home.
The 21-year-old is now finally getting his first taste of playing in English football as well as settling in a new environment, albeit temporary.
Despite the hectic footballing schedule since his arrival, the Dutchman has been able to explore parts of Bristol with family coming over to visit.
“Right now, with the Saturday, Tuesday, it’s busy,” Swinkels confessed. “But I had my family over for the weekend and we went into Clifton for a bit which was really nice. Obviously, it was sunny as well.
“I’ve been trying to get to know the city a little bit more and have been getting to know my little places to go on my days off. So just trying to get out of the apartment a little bit and getting to know the city because so far, I’ve been really enjoying Bristol.
“It’s all very outside compared to Birmingham and I’ve been enjoying that.
“I’m not drinking coffee but I do like a little cafe. I like my brunch, I like my tea. It’s easy but it gets you out of the house a little bit on the day off and it gets you wondering about town a little bit so I’ve definitely been trying to get out a bit.”
In regards to the most important bit though, the football, the young defender is just taking it all in.
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The 21-year-old is set to start for a fourth consecutive match this weekend away at Lincoln City with his tall, stoic frame, advanced reading of the game and no-nonsense approach making a real impression amongst Gasheads.
Swinkels was particularly impressive in the 1-0 win over Huddersfield Town, producing a miraculous goal line clearance with a header after Callum Marshall looked set to bundle the ball over the line. Finally, the defender feels like he is truly a part of a team after the occasional bench appearance at Villa.
“It’s like night and day,” the Rovers loanee affirmed. “ Like at Villa, obviously I was travelling quite a bit, but because I never really came on the pitch, it’s hard to describe your position in the squad and like everyone knows why they’re there or you know what your job is, but it always feels a little bit like you’re not sure. Whereas now you’re just playing every game.
“Even at the start, the first couple of games where it didn’t start, you’re fighting for a position and you know you’ve got that opportunity where you can get into the squad but it always feels a little bit like you’re not sure. Whereas now you know you’re fighting for a position and you know you’ve got that opportunity where you can get into the squad.
“Now, starting a couple of games in a row, you feel like you’re part of it. You feel like you’re helping the team and you feel like you’re more appreciated and you come in with a smile on your face a lot more, especially now when you’re winning games. It’s a big difference.”