South Shields-born Phil Brown returns to the dugout

The League Two promotion hopefuls have been looking for a replacement for David Flitcroft, who resigned to take over at Mansfield at the start of the month.

Brown, 58, was sacked by Southend after five years at Roots Hall in January, and now has 10 games to try and secure the Robins a play-off place.

"It's a great challenge," said Brown. "It's a short-term deal at the moment and the lure of the play-offs and possible promotion was a big attraction for me, as was the sales pitch from the chairman (Lee Power).

"Lee outlined what he wants for the club, and the ambition and that really interested me.

"We have a 10-game season now. It's really a snapshot of what football is all about. This is an opportunity to get the club promoted and coming into a situation like this, at the right end of the division, is a rarity in some senses.

"Another aspect of this is the size of Swindon as a club, who in my opinion have been a sleeping giant for years now. They have a fantastic history with some great names to have played or managed here. Couple that with the ambition of the chairman, it was an easy decision to make."

Brown confirmed Matt Taylor – who took charge of the club on Saturday – will be part of his coaching set-up.