Zan Vipotnik's goal against Blackburn was only his fifth of the season
Swansea City made a spectacular start to life after Luke Williams as they comprehensively beat play-off contenders Blackburn Rovers to earn their first home win of 2025.
Five days after sacking former head coach Williams following a run of eight defeats in 10 games, the Swans were reinvigorated under interim boss Alan Sheehan as they built a commanding 2-0 half-time lead.
Zan Vipotnik put the hosts in front as he slid in from close range, before the striker's rugged physicality created the space for Myles Peart-Harris to scamper clear and finish impressively.
Swansea continued to apply pressure after the interval and their top scorer Liam Cullen added a third goal with a sweet first-time finish from Peart-Harris' pass.
Blackburn had no answer to their rejuvenated opponents, whose fans regularly chanted Sheehan's name as the coach made a dream start to his second temporary spell in charge of the team.
Having lost their previous three matches at the Swansea.com Stadium, this victory lifts the Swans up to 16th in the table and moves them 10 points clear of the relegation zone.
As for Blackburn, a first defeat after two wins under their own interim manager, David Lowe, sees them drop one place to sixth.
Rovers are just one point ahead of the chasing pack as they search for a permanent successor to John Eustace after he swapped their promotion bid for a battle for survival at Derby County.
In this meeting of two managerless teams at opposite ends of the Championship table, the visitors started the game as favourites and created a couple of decent early chances for Andreas Weimann, both of which drew saves from Lawrence Vigouroux.
Once Swansea took the lead, however, they were the only side that looked like winning.
There had been bright moments under Williams, whose team had even threatened to join the race for a play-off place before the dismal run of form that preceded the end of his tenure.
In recent weeks, Swansea had become laboured as they mustered just one win and a paltry five goals from 10 games.
But on this occasion, they were unrecognisable. The Swans pressed Blackburn intensely with the dynamic duo of Lewis O'Brien and Goncalo Franco dominating in midfield to allow their team-mates in attack to cause the necessary damage.
The opening goal was a little scruffy as an off-balance Vipotnik did well to poke the ball past Rovers keeper Aynsley Pears; not that the home crowd cared for the strike's aesthetic value as they celebrated with gusto.
The burly Vipotnik was a handful for Blackburn's defenders all game, and the visitors thought they should have had a free-kick in the build-up to Swansea's second goal as the Slovenian striker wrestled Dion Sanderson out of the way.
But referee Gavin Ward waved play on and Peart-Harris raced clear and showed considerable poise to finish on the run and into the bottom far corner.
Swansea sustained that momentum after the break, with Vipotnik forcing Pears into two saves before Cullen swept in confidently from Peart-Harris' low cross to score their third.
There were further chances for Franco and Josh Tymon as the Swans fed off the jubilant atmosphere to secure a valuable victory after a turbulent week for the club.
