Ian Holloway’s first week as Swindon Town manager could not have gone a lot smoother, but he is right to say that the league is what really matters.

Since that exceptionally frantic period from the Thursday evening when Holloway both met his new agent and new club, Mark Kennedy formally left on the Friday before two hours later the former Blackpool boss was official, and then that afternoon he went to Beversbrook to meet his staff for the first time we have been in a Phoney War period.

Whilst the accord had been struck for a new manager to drive Swindon away from the relegation zone, there was one league game which he was not in charge of and then two home cup games which were nice to win but there would have been no major chastising if that didn’t happen. “Promotion and a cup run” might have been Clem Morfuni’s brief, but “Don’t you dare let this end in the National League” is the most pressing item in the in-tray.

Tomorrow was always going to be the start of the stuff which counts. Like rewatching the Star Wars prequels, the messing around watching the first two is over and as Anakin even says at the start: "This is where the fun begins" – at least, hopefully. Having a run to the FA Cup Third Round or the Bristol Street Motors Trophy final would make for a good time; I am not sure it would make up for away days at Gateshead and AFC Fylde next season.

Whilst their league form in the early parts of this season might not make the point especially emphatically, Milton Keynes Dons away is a tough first game. Now Scott Lindsey is there, you would expect them to be challenging heavily for the top three for the rest of the season with the squad they have. It is not necessarily a game where Swindon have to go there and win. But it could be a big confidence boost ahead of games against Accrington Stanley and Morecambe before going to Colchester United. Your classic six-pointers.

Holloway has rearmed well in his first two weeks despite the Phoney War raging on. Two wins from two in the cups and more guts shown by the squad, along with his passion spelt out like a billboard in the dugout and press conferences mean for the first time since 'The Boys of Summer' that the vibe is positive. It has been two weeks since fans had to be haunted by another strange mistake and draining defeat, extending that time would be big.

96 points left to win. That is what Holloway has told us. Professional wrestler “The Miz” said something similar about my other sports team the Cleveland Browns a couple of weeks ago and that lasted all of one week. We will see how they manage with picking all of those up and smashing Northampton Town’s 99-point record haul in the process. Win at Stadium MK and maybe we can come back to Morfuni’s promotion charge but the important part is maintaining the positivity which I have noticed slinking back in.

I have definitely enjoyed these two weeks, so much so that I am trying to guard against having too much hope. They have felt different, the football has looked different, and the results were certainly different. 1,000 fans in the away end on Saturday will make that look a little bit different too. Whilst Lindsey’s own tenure at Swindon was not a success, everything since has been a disaster and with him across the halfway line from this new era, we can only hope it will be emblematic of something better.