5 Things We Learned from York City's 2-1 defeat at Swindon

He might have only started 58 per cent of games and been left completely out of the matchday squad twice this season but, in terms of goals assisted and scored, left-back David Ferguson’s combined tally of five is only beaten by strikers Jordan Burrow (12), Macaulay Langstaff (eight) and Jon Parkin (six) in the City squad. Ferguson arrived at Bootham Crescent last October with a reputation for finding the net, having already notched five times for Darlington by that stage of the 2017/18 campaign and he certainly demonstrated a poacher’s instinct for his 43rd-minute equaliser at Swindon.

While Ferguson has not matched his potent start to last season this time around, the ex-England C international’s second goal of the campaign is a haul that again, when penalties are disregarded, can only be bettered by Burrow (six) and Langstaff (five). With three assists on the leaderboard, meanwhile, the ex-Blackpool full-back only trails Burrow, whose saved header at the County Ground for Ferguson’s leveller means he has teed up seven goals now this season, and Alex Harris on four.

Ferguson arguably deserves to be equal with Harris too, given the quality of the second-half cross that was narrowly headed wide by Nathan Dyer in Wiltshire. Under Sam Collins, though, Ferguson has been selected most often when the ex-Hartlepool caretaker chief has opted for a wing-back system suggesting there remain reservations about his defensive play and, with the source of Swindon’s two goals emanating down City’s left flank, that might not have changed over the weekend.

A 3-5-2 formation or the kind of advanced position fellow full-back Dyer occupied against the Football League outfit might still present Ferguson with his best opportunity for regular selection and to showcase the stronger elements of his game.

2 Joe Davis looks a potential threat at set-pieces

Hamza Bencherif’s failure to net during three seasons with the Minstermen has been well-documented, especially in the context of his respectable scoring record from centre-back at higher levels prior to his North Yorkshire switch. In contrast, new signing Joe Davis is yet to hit the target in 74 appearances across League One, Two and the Conference, but his City debut did suggest that he can cause problems in the opposition box.

The Minstermen’s first chance of the match, just before the half-hour point, came when Davis headed Josh Law’s corner towards goal and Jordan Burrow narrowly missed the target with his thigh. In the second period, Davis also got himself in a position where he almost forced home an Alex Harris flag kick at the far post.

The 25-year-old defender might struggle to match the 50 per cent City strike-rate of his father Steve, who hit the target once in just two loan appearances for the club back in 1997, but it was nevertheless an encouraging start at both ends of the pitch.

3 City fans were a credit to the club

Few team’s supporters have been through the wringer more than the Minstermen faithful over the last three years, but the noise they made at the former Premier League ground was outstanding. It followed on from the backing they displayed with their ten-man team 3-0 down the previous weekend against Bradford Park Avenue to help inspire a brief fightback when a very different reaction might have been anticipated at Bootham Crescent.

Undoubtedly, City supporters are never slow to express their displeasure when merited, but their County Ground crescendo demonstrated that, when the standards they expect are met, they will back their side to the hilt.

4 Jordan Burrow can provide the endeavour to occupy three defenders

The former Gateshead striker has operated as a lone central striker before for City, but not in quite as isolated a fashion as against Saturday’s League Two hosts. Given the midfield ability of Phil Brown’s men, Burrow was asked to do the majority of the Minstermen’s work in the final third of the pitch, especially when on-loan Rotherham winger Alex Bray tired after the interval.

His manful industry, though, guaranteed Swindon’s back three could never relax and that the visitors had a willing outlet and carried an attacking threat even when outnumbered in that area of the field. The effectiveness of placing team-mates closer to Burrow, though, was most obviously highlighted by Ferguson’s equaliser.

Sam Collins will now know Burrow can lead the line on his own but, equally, the nearer the rest of the team are to him the better.

5 Adriano Moke’s ability needs to be evidenced more in attacking areas of the pitch

The former Glenn Hoddle Academy graduate appears to have found a level of consistency and confidence that has eluded him at times during his Bootham Crescent career and he showed Swindon players a clean pair of heels on several occasions. With the assurance of having Kallum Griffiths and Lewis Hawkins behind him, it would now be great to witness Moke making those positive forward bursts closer to the opponent’s goal and breaking defensive lines as he did for his only goal this term against Blyth.

Moke has not yet claimed an assist in 2018/19 and the Minstermen could really benefit from that untapped potential to maximise the damage he could inflict on sides with his acceleration, pace and fitness levels.