Give Shrewsbury Town a coach journey around England’s motorway network and a sat nav system this season and a disjointed display has all too often followed. 

And Saturday’s long trip to Bournemouth showed few signs of that trend being halted as the business end of the season arrives. 

See our photo gallery here and read the full story in today’s Shropshire Star

In what is becoming an ever growing list of away day miseries, this 1-0 reverse sits alongside the setbacks at Accrington, Grimsby, Morecambe and Blyth.

One such blip, maybe even two, can be excused. 

But such continual setbacks against the League’s lesser lights are proving more than a coincidence. 

Undoubtedly, Town have a serious problem on the road – and one which is threatening to wreck their promotion challenge. 

It has not proved terminal at present and Shrewsbury enter the final 16 games of the season with their aspirations of playing League One football next season still intact. 

But playing the numbers game only serves to prove that while Town’s home form has championship pedigree, results away from the comforts of the Prostar Stadium resemble that of a side struggling at the other end of the table.

It’s now just 11 goals and 12 points from 15 games on their travels, while Town have won just once from 27 away League games in a run which dates back to December 2007. 

Saturday’s display at Dean Court was symptomatic of Shrewsbury on the road at League Two’s strugglers this term. 

At either end of this encounter, Town were to have spells of possession and enjoyed some sustained pressure during a 20-minute spell in the second period. 

But the visitors could muster no more than a handful of chances against opposition who were there for the taking.

Two of those came in the opening stages when Steve Leslie fired a fierce drive at Shwan Jalal while Nick Chadwick blazed over after getting on the end of a cross from Darren Moss. 

But Shrewsury’s irritating knack of conceding sloppy goals on the road was to return on 21 minutes when the usually impressive Luke Daniels mis-judged a Brett Pitman corner which appeared to loop over him and directly into the net. 

It was a situation Shrewsbury have found themselves all too often away from home this term and one, for the next 40 minutes, they rarely looked like rectifying. 

Other than one dipping 30 yard effort from Ben Davies which landed on the roof of the net, Shrewsbury laboured badly as an attacking force as the first half drew to a close and the second period opened. 

Indeed, they were fortunate not to fall further behind when Pitman fired a golden chance over just after the re-start. 

Shrewsbury finally took the initiative in the game’s final third and a relative flurry of chances followed as the visitors bossed territory. 

Grant Holt failed to connect with an attempted back flick from a Leslie cross while Mike Jackson and Darren Moss both went close from corners, the latter looping a header onto the bar. 

But it was another day when the quality to break down an opposition defence was lacking from Shrewsbury and the gross frustration spilled over in four minutes of injury time, during which the visitors were denied a penalty when Ben Davies appeared to be chopped down in the box. 

Holt and Graham Coughlan both received bookings, while the misery was compounded when Moss was red-carded for a petulant kick-out at Pitman after the Town full-back had been fouled.

It was one of those bleak away days for Shrewsbury Town. But that has been said on far too many occasions this season.

By James Garrison