Swansea tried once again to park the bus, but couldn't sustain what had been a wholehearted defensive performance for the entire match, falling at the last hurdle to a Jack Wilshere goal.

Unlike the first leg in which the Swans were galvanised by Arsenal's late lead and fought back to equalizer in the last minute, this time the Swans' collective energy seemed to dissipate like a dying breath as Wilshere's finish ruined 86 minutes worth of defending in one stroke.

- Match report: Arsenal 1-0 Swansea

Such is the risk of playing so defensively. When the system works, as it did in the 2-0 victory over Chelsea, the 0-0 versus Everton or (to a lesser extent) the 2-2 draw against Arsenal in the first leg, the defensive stand takes on a heroic aspect and provokes a cavalcade of 'plucky upstarts park the bus and surprise bigger team' style missives.

When it fails, as it did tonight, then all that remains is frustration and emptiness for the Swans and their fans, and derisive observation about how 'they barely took a shot on goal in the second half' from nearly everyone else.

Despite the obvious disappointment at having lost the game, it is hard to shake the feeling that the Swans might actually be relieved to have at least one less game to worry about now. Looking at Michael Laudrup's radically rotated squad pre-game, it was hard to decide whether he was prepared to lose, fielding squad players against tough opposition to rest starters, or if he thought the Swans could defend and go the distance -- the distance in this case being extra time and penalties.

I have the feeling it might be the latter. By playing relatively fresh faces such as Kyle Bartley and Jazz Richards, the Swans might have expected to be the fitter side heading into the extra period. Of course, that eventuality was negated, not when Wilshere scored, but when Ki Sung-Yueng sent a through ball out for a goal kick just moments after Arsenal had taken the lead.

Ki's pass came during a promising looking counter attack, full of the kind of urgency and drive which saw the Swans force the replay in the first place. In the event, Ki overhit the ball, and at that moment it seemed as though the side gave a collective exhausted shrug and spent the rest of the game (all two or three minutes of it) letting the clock run out instead.

It is hard to blame them given the schedule they've endured since just before Christmas. The Swans still sit on the cusp of an historic first league cup final, and are enjoying top half security in the league table. It was a testament to the Swans' lesser seen lights that they were able to come within a whisker of extra time and within a few inches of a goal when Kyle Bartley's header hit the crossbar.

Arsenal, of course, had more shots than a school on measles vaccination day, but for the most part couldn't convert, with Danny Graham showing his defensive worth by making a goal-line block, and Leon Britton doing the same.

It might have been a case of too much, too late for the Swans this time round, but they can still be proud to have pushed Arsenal to the 86th minute with half a team of so-called reserve players. The weekend awaits, and Stoke visit. It should be the perfect chance for the Swans to leave the bus in the shed for a change and bring out the fancy motor again. It's been too long.

Final Thoughts:

Positives: Great effort from unfamiliar line-up. Close to surviving 90 minutes.

Negatives: A few uncharacteristic defensive errors, but that's to be expected with so much rotation. Not nearly enough attacking intent or interest in the second half.

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