Town midfielder starting to make a Mark

Schwabl started Town’s 1-0 win at Walsall and got 90 minutes under his belt in the 0-0 draw against AFC Wimbledon on Saturday.

Town now enter the final eight games of the campaign on the back of just one defeat in their last 21 league games.

Schwabl swapped German 3 Liga club VfR Aalen for the Fylde coast in January, teaming up with fellow countryman and Town head coach Uwe Rosler.

The 26-year-old says it has taken time to adapt but the pressing and competitive nature of the English game suits him.

He said: “It took some time to adapt to the English way of playing and I’m happy to be here.

“In Germany the teams try to play from the back. Here it is all about the duels in the middle, heading, second balls and pressing.

“That is the biggest difference and the referee does not use his whistle the whole game. It is better for my way of playing.”

Town have amassed 68 points and are now just two wins away from Rosler’s new 74-point target.

On Saturday the Dons joined a select group of three clubs who have prevented Rosler’s men from scoring in league games at Highbury this season.

They follow Rochdale and this Saturday’s opponents Bury in leaving the Fylde coast with 0-0 draws.

And as Town prepare to travel to Gigg Lane for the reverse fixture with the Shakers, Schwabl is expecting a similar match to last weekend’s.

He said: “It was an important point against Wimbledon and we keep going.

“Teams that play here make it very tight in the middle, so we have to find solutions to win the games.

“The next away game will be the same, I think, so the biggest thing is to keep playing and trying to create chances.

“I always want to win every game but on Saturday you had to be very happy with a point because they had chances at the end. In the last 20 minutes it was a bit lucky maybe.”

Town are third in the table with eight games left, but like his coach and team-mates Schwabl is keeping his feet on the ground and taking it game by game.

He added: “The next important game is on Saturday.That is what we have to focus on. The seven games after it I don’t think about.”

Saturday’s match at Gigg Lane will be overseen by Premier League referee Kevin Friend.

The last match the Leicester-based official took charge of was Manchester United’s controversial 1-1 draw against Bournemouth at Old Trafford at the start of the month.