What a shame we couldn’t hold on against Grimsby to put our hunt for promotion back on track, writes our new Shrewsbury Town blogger James Pugh. At least we continued to put the brakes on our losing run.
If it wasn’t for a harsh sending off against Colin Murdoch and better finishing in front of goal then we may have come away with three points.
Gary Peters has described the game as one of the best away games since Lincoln and has promised to be attack-minded in every game until the end of the season. Great news!
One of my biggest criticisms of the team so far this season has been their tendency to sit back and hold on to what they have got after taking the lead, which we end up getting punished for.
Against Grimsby we continued to create chances after taking the lead and could have been winning. This time we got punished for a bad decision by the referee.
The new signings continue to impress, especially Guy Madjo and Asa Hall, and as long as Gary can buy a natural goalscorer before the end of the transfer window then I think we will have a great chance of making the play-offs.
I would like us to buy Stuart Fleetwood from Forest Green but I have doubts over whether we can afford him.
Another alternative is Michael Boulding from Mansfield. As long as they are willing to risk letting him go and end up being relegated. He is a proven goalscorer and at 31 will add more experience to the squad.
If Gary fails to sign someone permanently then maybe we should look at taking a young striker on loan from the Premiership or Championship.
Another recent development at the club has seen the appointment of Rob Bickerton as managing director.
He can certainly talk the talk, outlining his desire for The Shrews to reach the Coca-Cola Championship.
We have certainly got the stadium and the fans to achieve this but I worry whether Gary can take us further forward to meet Rob’s ambition.
Gary has done a great job of stabilising the club when we most needed it and has made some excellent signings, such as Kelvin Langmead.
However, since reaching the play-off final last season I feel we have gone backwards and have had to question a lot of his decisions and tactics. I am willing to see how we finish at the end of the season before making my mind up as to whether Gary should stay or not.
Rob has also suggested that he is going to sit in with the fans at games to find out what they are thinking, which I think is a great idea as he will be able to relay their thoughts to the powers that be.
Next up is a tough away game to Bradford on Tuesday night and lets hope we continue to be more positive and come back home with three points.
Do you agree with our blogger’s views on this match as well as Shrewsbury Town’s current position and future potential? Have your say in the comment box below.
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4 Comments
I agree with your comments about giving Gary until the end of the season. I am glad to see he has made changes as some players were not living up to the levels they set last season. Symes for example can be a great player on his day but has lacked flare and doesn’t look like he was at the races.
I feel the playoffs are beyond us now after a poor ref cost us 3 points on Saturday but there are many games where we can say we should have done better!. If Gary can continue this mini run and get us into the playoffs his changes will prove a good turning point.
On the new MD Rob Bickerton he can certainly talk the talk with all the ambitions the club has. The club has great potential to move forward but this doesn’t happen over night but I believe GP is the man to take us forward. Just look at Oxford, they have a great stadium and are in the Conference. To sit with the fans to gain ideas is also a good point as it shows us die hard fans that the club are listening to the fans. 3 points at Bradford no problem!
i agree with most of the blog except for the criticism of the manager. i still think gp can get us promotion not perhaps this year though. we were undone by injuries to crucial players in the autumn. now look at the classy players bought in during the last 3 weeks and the results since. i think the boss is doing a good job. my only fear is that if we were to win the playoffs this year we might not be good enough to stay up. one criticism i have of the new md is that he wants money from big business to name the stadium, i know the fans don’t count for much but they have come up with some excellent suggestions and shoud have notice taken of them.
I am with the blogger on Peters I just don’t think he can take us any further.
As always the proof is in the pudding but anything less than 7th in May and GP has to go.
i agree with most of the blog but i think we are letting in to many goals at the back. gary madjo is a great player!!!!!!