Ian Holloway is cracking the code at Swindon Town with player once let go by Ipswich | OneFootball

Aaron Drinan is having the season of his life during the opening stages of the League Two campaign

After a few disappointing seasons finishing in League Two's mid-table, Swindon Town have started the new campaign brilliantly, sitting atop the tree with six wins in eight.

Six in eight is also the goal to game numbers for Aaron Drinan, who is in the form of his life under Ian Holloway.

The Irish centre-forward has been a serviceable frontman throughout his career so far, with the 27-year-old's best season in front of goal since he arrived in the EFL in 2018 coming in the form of a 13-goal League Two campaign with Leyton Orient, which he managed in 40 appearances.

It's taken Drinan a while to find his feet properly under a certain style, and it looks like it's the former Blackpool boss who is bringing out the best in him.

And if he and Swindon continue to perform admirably in the fourth tier this season, Ipswich Town fans may look down with a smile on their face, knowing that a striker who couldn't quite get going whilst he was at Portman Road is finally hitting his stride.

Aaron Drinan's first foray in the EFL was with Ipswich Town

Born in Cork, Ireland, Drinan played his entire youth career in his native country before he made the move to Ipswich in January 2018, aged 19.

Loan moves back to the League of Ireland, and then subsequent ones to the National League and the Scottish Championship followed, before he finally made his full Ipswich debut in the EFL Cup's first round in 2020, before making his league debut the following week on the opening day of the 2020/21 League One campaign against Wigan Athletic.

Unfortunately, he was never able to cement his place in the side under Paul Lambert and then Paul Cook, and the 2020/21 campaign would be his last at Portman Road. He made just six League One starts and scored once in a 1-1 draw with Crewe Alexandra.

He was let go in June 2021 for an undisclosed fee, signing for Leyton Orient. There, he was an important first-team player in his first season, scoring 13 league goals, but the season after saw him relegated to a bench option.

That campaign saw the O's win League Two, and the return to the third tier proved too much for the Irishman, and he was once again sold to a fourth-tier side, with Swindon picking him up in January 2024.

Aaron Drinan is finally showing top-striker promise at Swindon Town

Ian Holloway's first full season in charge at Swindon has the Robins battling atop the League Two table just over a month into the new campaign, and Drinan is one of the main reasons why.

Drinan's six goals already this season mean that it is his third-most prolific campaign in front of goal, and you'd be surprised if he doesn't overtake the seven and 13-goal-scoring campaigns he's exhibited in the past, given how he's performing.

His brace against Harrogate Town last time out extended his current scoring run to five in the last four games, which have all seen Holloway's side come out on the right side of a result.

It's still only early days, but this Swindon team are looking incredibly exciting under Holloway, and many are predicting that this early run of form should be able to be maintained until May.

And, despite looking for a while that he would never reach the heights many had hoped for when he arrived at Ipswich eight years ago, Drinan is finally looking like a striker who can net 20+ goals in a single season.