THE fixture list may be set to take a turn to the favourable for Swindon Town but striker Marc Richards says there is no chance of complacency creeping in.

On Saturday, Town entertain a Port Vale side who have yet to register a win from seven League Two fixtures in 2018, picking up just three points in that time to drop to 19th in the table.

David Flitcroft’s side follow that up next weekend with a trip to second-from-bottom Chesterfield, who are three points adrift of safety.

Those matches come after a challenging run of four successive fixtures against sides currently occupying spots in the play-off places or better, most recently at third-in-the-table Wycombe Wanderers on Tuesday night which ended in a 3-2 defeat for the visitors.

After a sequence of big games that could yet prove crucial when it comes to the final promotion reckoning at the end of the season, tomorrow’s clash against the Valiants might well offer a bit of light relief for Town.

However, experienced forward Richards insists nobody within the camp will assume victory is a foregone conclusion.

“You look at the games we have got coming up, they are against teams that are below us in the table and we expect that we should go out and take maximum points from a lot of those games,” said 35-year-old Richards.

“That is not to say the points are a given and first and foremost, we have to make sure we are right as individuals and as a team and go out and give a good account of ourselves.

“The one thing in football you can’t guarantee is performance, but you can certainly guarantee that we work hard for each other and the structure of our play is good and that we set up as a strong, solid unit.

“From now until the end of the season there is going to be no easy game and no easy points to be won.

“We have two teams fighting towards the bottom of the table coming up and sometimes that can be tougher than the teams fighting for promotion, as ultimately they are scrapping for their lives and their livelihoods.

“I have been in teams that have gone under against teams at the bottom because they haven’t approached the game in the correct manner.

“I know the gaffer is not going to allow that here.”

Richards knows all about the chief threat that Vale carry when they arrive at the Energy Check County Ground having alongside their top scorer, Tom Pope, for 18 months during his own previous spell with the Stoke side.

Pope has netted 16 goals in all competitions this season but Richards says there is no need for him to help the Town defence brush up on what to expect.

“I don’t need to speak to the defenders and tell them all about Tom Pope and what his strengths and weaknesses are,” said Richards, who joined Town on a free transfer in January.

“They will know Tom Pope from being around League One and League Two for most of his career. I have no doubt they will have played against him on numerous occasions.

“He is a threat and he is a goalscorer so we will be aware of what he can and can’t do but it’s not about Tom Pope, it is about what we do.

“I think as long as we stick to our gameplan and our structure and how we want to go about things, then we shouldn’t have too many concerns.”