Good news at last - Kelvin OK

Key defender Kelvin Langmead is set to hand Shrewsbury Town a much-needed boost by returning to training within the next week.The 22-year-old saw his ever-present League Two record this season come to an end on Saturday when he missed the 1-0 home defeat to Bury with a knee injury.

But a trip to a specialist yesterday provided a positive prognosis and while Saturday’s trip to Chesterfield may come a little too soon for the defender, it appears he will be fit to play a significant part in the run-in.

“It’s good news in that it is not a long term problem,” manager Paul Simpson confirmed today. “It was something that came up in training last week and, although Kelvin got through the Notts County game, it got a bit sorer.

“It wasn’t right for the long-term for him to play on Saturday and hopefully we have given it a chance to settle down.

“We are hoping Kelvin will be back in training later this week, or at the start of next, but Luke Jones came in and did very well on Saturday so it’s not something we will take a chance on.”

Hopes of an immediate return for midfielder David Hunt, however, appear to have been dashed as he continues to recover from a late collision at Macclesfield.

“When it happened, Hunty’s neck, shoulders and groin all effectively went into spasm,” explained the Town boss.

“We concentrated on getting the shoulder right but the problem with his groin and hip area flared up again.

“He went to see a specialist yesterday and it could be possibly two or three weeks. But we will keep giving him intensive treatment.”

Shrewsbury, who remain in danger of being sucked into a relegation scrap, will keep one eye on tonight’s meeting between the bottom two teams, Mansfield and Wrexham, at Field Mill.

But Simpson is simply focussed on ending his side’s long search for a victory.

“The players are low on confidence and you can’t just give someone a bucket of confidence,” he said.

“It’s about building it up and getting the players to do the right things.”