How The Moonraker plans to expand its Swindon Town coverage in 2026/27
30.07.26, 22:17 Updated 30.07.26, 22:17 4 Minute Read
Sam Morshead
This weekend, The Moonraker turns two years old.
Two years, huh! Where did that go?
In those two years, a second beautiful son has been added to my family, another inch or two has been added to my waistband, and - remarkably – I’ve acquired a new level of fascination about our peculiar football club.
It has been a strange and undulating 24 months, taking in the occasional exhilarating peak and many more depth-plunging troughs.
After so many years away from the Town grind, though, it has been a real delight to be able to share the experience with you all, on a platform which would not work without you.
The Swindon Town fan community has not only backed The Moonraker, it has empowered this upstart crow.
Because of you, I’ve been given the freedom to deliver news, analysis, commentary and interviews which serve a purpose beyond page impressions.
Because of you, I’ve been afforded the space not to publish for the sake of it.
Because of you, I’ve been able to build an independent media title which (I hope) is delivering for its community.
Because of you, The Moonraker has broken an abundance of transfer stories, provided critical background and context, offered a range of perspectives, reinvested subscriber cash in worthy STFC-related causes, and earned a nomination at the Sports Journalism Awards – my industry’s Oscars.
Thank you.
The Moonraker is nothing without its members, now some 600-plus strong, engaged, loyal, and brilliant.
You have allowed me to publish only when I have something worth publishing.
You have given me inspiration, direction, and criticism at all the right times.
When my son was born last year, you gave me two weeks enjoying my new baby boy, and refused the offer of a refund.
When you need to understand the nuances of an event at the County Ground, I hope that you can now trust The Moonraker to provide.
Two years is just the start, though.
And as we embark on a third season, it’s only right that I enhance the offering for subscribers, and non-subscribers alike.
So, here’s how I intend to take The Moonraker’s coverage up a level in 2026/27.
- Newsletters: The Moonraker will send two new members’ only newsletters (one on a Monday, one on a Friday) from the week beginning August 10.
- On Mondays, welcome to The Town. Here, The Moonraker will reflect on the weekend’s events and give readers key Robins topics to look out for over the coming week.
- Friday’s newsletter will be the home of The Sam Morshead Column – a sandpit for STFC commentary and analysis, as well as musings on more general matters.
- For non-members, STFC Daily will arrive most lunchtimes during the week. This newsletter will showcase the best things on The Moonraker, as well as Town stories from elsewhere across the local media landscape. It will be absolutely free: anyone who creates an account or signs up to the newsletter on The Moonraker will get it in their inbox.
- Social video will also ramp up, with regular posts across Moonraker and my personal channels.
- These videos will take in pre-match press conferences, reflections on matches, and explainers on events in SN1.
And finally, you’ll be able to read all Moonraker content on an app.
Yep. I promised it, and now it’s here.
The CounterPress app will allow you to have The Moonraker in your pocket at all times, with push notifications giving you immediate knowledge of the latest posts.
More to come on this very soon (but if you search for ‘CounterPress’ on the app stores right now, you can steal a yard on others).
All the above is on top of the service The Moonraker has provided over the past two years.
I can’t wait to get going.
But there is one proviso.
From Saturday, I will be going away with my family for a week. So, following the example of every single Swindon Town team for the past 12 years, I am discarding the first round of the League Cup.
Full service commences ahead of Northampton (a).
Thank you for being a part of it.
Sam
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Sam Morshead is the founder and editor of The Moonraker. He was previously the chief sports writer at the Swindon Advertiser, head of sport at Total Swindon, and has been a Swindon Town fan since 1994.
