There was no shortage of transparency at Haverfordwest RFC last night as Swansea City Chairman Trevor Birch, manager Steve Cooper, and Sporting Director Leon Britton faced up to more than 130 Pembrokeshire Jacks at their latest fan forum.

And in an age where professional football personnel are often criticised for giving clichéd answers and not engaging with the public, the trio were refreshingly honest about a range of issues, including the financial constraints that currently restrict the club in the transfer market.

Cooper, who took over at the Liberty Stadium in the summer, spoke of his gratitude to the club for appointing him and said the visit was very much part of his vision to integrate with the community.

“You guys travel miles to watch us play, so the least we can do is come down for a couple of hours.

“The players and staff know how important it is to be part of the community. I want us all to be in this together without any kind of hierarchy.”

Cooper also spoke about how he managed the build-up to the recent South Wales derby, explained his decision to take the captaincy off Mike van der Hoorn in favour of Matt Grimes, and said it was too premature to be contemplating promotion back to the Premier League.

He also joked that he had plans to bring Joe Allen back in January although “wasn’t so sure about Trevor,” but perhaps most notably for local fans, provided an update on the future of Liam Cullen.

“He’s a player we are very aware of and he trained a lot with us pre-season,” he said.

“He may need to go out on loan soon and get some first team experience and then come back and try and break into our squad. He’s capable.”

Britton meanwhile, revered by Swansea fans for his 16 year stint as a player, recalled his memories of the side beating Hull to remain in the football league back in 2003, and of the play off final win in 2011 that secured promotion to the top flight. He labelled Gylfi Sigurdsson as the best he’d played with.

He also spoke candidly about the club losing its identity in the final years of the Premier League, and said the Swans were now returning to their ethos of bringing through academy players and only signing individuals prepared to fit into the philosophy.

Chairman Birch explained the club’s financial position was still a precarious one, and was brutally honest when asked about January transfer plans.

“We want to be sustainable going forward,” he said.

“But it would need players to leave before we think about bringing any in. Our next parachute payment (after being relegated) will be reduced but at the moment we still have players like Andre Ayew and Borja on Premier League contracts.

“As it stands there are no funds to splash in January.”

He added that contrary to belief, all money raised from recent transfer sales had gone back into the running of Swansea City, and no pay outs had been made to owners Jason Levien and Steven Kaplan or the 27 American investors currently associated with the club.

Birch also admitted that in an ideal world gambling companies wouldn’t play such a prominent role in football, but said the sponsorship funds they offer protect the future of clubs like Swansea, which makes it almost impossible to take a moral stance.

Overall, the trio spent more than two hours taking questions and provided a fascinating insight into the running of the club. The event was organised by Phil Busby, who arranges the match day transport for the Pembrokeshire Jacks group, while Jonathan Twigg acted as MC. He rounded off matters by thanking Phil and Cooper, Birch, and Britton - who also spent ample time posing for pictures and speaking personally to those in attendance.

There was also a raffle with the top prize, a signed Swansea City shirt, being collected by Jordan Howell.