Swansea 0 Brighton 0 - Match Report
16,733 were present that day and both Lee Trundle and Jason McAteer failed from the penalty spot to give the Swans the three points on their return to League One. (Report here and pictures here) Much has passed by since that date with tears, cheers and jeers along the way. Magical moments such as Trundle chipping the Yeovil keeper from 40 yards, Leon Knight grabbing a debut hat trick inside half an hour as well as of course the seven goal destruction of Bristol City.
The Liberty Stadium, or White Rock as we preferred to call it back then has never become the fortress that we wanted to see and it has been much criticised for over zealous stewarding, poor design, lack of atmosphere and pretty much most things around. What it did achieve though was to see a massive increase in Swans attendances - we now have 7000+ season ticket holders alone - and has allowed the club to spend serious money in the transfer market from the extra receipts that the ground has produced.
In addition, the pitch has stood up as well as any pitch in the country thanks to it's incredible grass that shows hundreds of thousands of plastic strands interlocked with the actual grass that is laid on the pitch.
The grass goes down at the Liberty
There is probably still much that could be improved at the Liberty Stadium and, to some, it will never feel like home but it has transformed Swansea City and, love it or loathe it, it will be here for many more games than the 50 league ones it has already experienced.
But what are the best and worst moments of the Liberty Stadium? We take a look back at some of the memorable league moments so far
Swansea City 7 Bristol City 1 10th September 2005
I don't think I will ever forget this game. Bristol City arrived and were expected to give us a real test. And so they did, until half time anyway. Kevin McLeod scored direct from a corner as the half time whistle was about to sound. And from then on in the Swans went goal crazy. They scored six in the second half, and had one disallowed for good measure. The defining moment for me was seeing City manager Brian Tinnion alone in the dug out at the end of the game - he lost his job days later. This was as good as it gets - a goal fest against local rivals. It's what football is all about. View the report of the game here and pictures here
Swansea City 5 Chesterfield 1 29th October 2005
I think this game is as good as we have been at the Liberty. Chesterfield arrived with a reputation as a footballing side but we tore them apart. The game was a tremendous spectacle and over as a contest by half time with the Swans already 4-1 up. Lee Trundle was on hat-trick duty as the Swans took their tally of goals by the end of October to an incredible 37 - more than any side in the league at that stage. It really was tremendous stuff to watch and a game again that will live long in the memory. View the report of the game here and pictures here
Swansea City 2 Yeovil Town 0 18th November 2005
The Swans were on fire at this stage of the season and Trundle was knocking in goals for fun. Numbers 16 and 17 of the season were scored in this game but it was the second that will stick long in the memory. A harmless looking clearance from Chris Weale fell at the feet of Trundle who hammered it straight back over the keepers head and into the back of the net. The Liberty rose as one to acknowledge their hero. View the report of the game here and pictures here
Swansea City 3 Milton Keynes Dons 1 10th January 2006
The Swans returned themselves to the top of the league with one of the most inspired debuts in the club's history. It seemed to be an incredible piece of business to snap up Leon Knight for just £125,000 and he had a debut hat-trick in 27 minutes to beat MK Dons. The season turned from there and the Swans slowly slipped away but it was some debut. Knight's time though was soon to turn sour and he was on his way out before completing 12 months at Swansea. View the report of the game here and pictures here
Swansea City 3 Blackpool 6 5th May 2007
A thoroughly entertaining game as the Swans pushed for an unlikely play off place. Having seemed out of contention back in February, a run of promotion form had seen the Swans having a chance of the play offs on the final day. It needed to be a win though and a hope that Oldham fell away. Blackpool though were on a terrific run of form and 4 goals from Andy Morrell gave them the edge in a nine goal thriller. The Seasiders went onto win promotion via the play offs. Read the reports of the game here and pictures here
Of course there are more memorable moments but that is five that just stood out from the 50 league games played at the Liberty. What will the next 50 and beyond yield?
View our section on the making of a new stadium here
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