Sousa's plea for Swansea support

Paulo Sousa hailed the Liberty Stadium full house for roaring Swansea City to a memorable south Wales derby victory.

The Swans boss watched his side beat Cardiff City 3-2 before pleading with fans not to desert the Championship's form club in their promotion bid.

"We appreciated the way, this time, that our fans supported us," Sousa said. "I finally saw our fans push us until the end to get the win.

"I hope in the future that it can be like that against all opponents."

Swansea enjoyed a Liberty Stadium high average crowd of 15,186 last season in their first campaign back in the second tier of English football after a 24 year absence.

The Swans challenged for the Championship play-off spots until of the end of the season - missing out by just six points - but manager Roberto Martinez's defection to Premier League Wigan Athletic affected the morale of a section of the Swans support.

New boss Sousa struggled to just one win in his opening six games at the Liberty Stadium as the 39-year-old found it tough succeeding such a cult hero as Martinez.

But the former Portugal international has made his team tough to beat and their newly-found defensive resolve has helped inspire the Swans to within two points of the play-offs thanks to a 10-match unbeaten run.

Swansea's victory over Cardiff on Saturday means Sousa's side have beaten three of the Championship's top four in the last month.

The Liberty Stadium was sold out for their all-Wales Championship clash and their 18,209-capacity gate was their highest attendance since winning promotion to this division.

In fact, the derby gate was Swansea's biggest crowd since their League One promotion party against Yeovil Town in April 2008 when they celebrated promotion to the Championship despite a 2-1 defeat.

The bumper crowd watched an action-packed Championship thriller between two of the division's best sides and Sousa hopes Swansea's supporters were so impressed that the fans will come back.

"To improve our club and improve our team, they have an important task," Sousa told the fans.

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" As a Bluebird, I wasn't pleased with the result but credit where credit is due and the future is looking bright for Swansea, particularly with Sousa at the helm "

"This is what we have to improve. It is a call for more fans as the way they supported us in the derby was important. For us to be a better team and be stronger, they have an important task."

Swansea's average crowd has reduced slightly this season to 14,713 but Sousa hopes their derby triumph and a second successive promotion push can woo the fans back.

Darren Pratley's double inspired the Swans to victory and the midfielder also had a hand in Nathan Dyer's opener as they survived a battling Cardiff comeback - as Jay Bothroyd and Mark Hudson scored to level - to seal the win.

Swansea extended their run to eight unbeaten against the fiercest rivals - and Sousa was quick to acknowledge the derby win impact on the city.

"It means a lot to all of us and is not just special for us but the fans and the city," he said.

"There is a lot of happiness here. We can be proud with ourselves, fans can go to work with more energy and to help the city to grow.

"The win reinforces our convictions and confidence and tells us once more that we're in a good way."

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