Paul Simpson has been backed to bring the good times to Shrewsbury Town – by one of English football’s most enduring figures.

Simpson will lead out Shrewsbury against Gillingham at Wembley on Saturday just 14 months after succeeding Gary Peters at the League Two club.

And he will do so with a glowing reference from The Bald Eagle himself, Jim Smith.

The pair are no stranger to success, with Simpson being the tricky winger and Smith the manager during Derby County’s march to the top flight in 1995.

They went on to spend three seasons together at the Baseball Ground.

And, while Smith freely admits he didn’t immediately see Simpson as a manager-in-waiting back then, he has been impressed by the progress he has made in the top jobs at Rochdale, Carlisle, Preston and now Shrewsbury.

“To be honest, when Paul was a player with me at Derby, I would have probably said he would go into coaching and maybe not be a manager,” said Smith, who is still involved at Oxford in an advisory capacity and has now reached 50 years in football as player, manager and coach.

“He was a very clever player, not a winger with a huge amount of pace but a great left foot and very intelligent.

“He was one of the quieter lads, but thought about the game a lot. I’ve followed his progress with interest and I’m really pleased for him.

“He did exceptionally well at Carlisle and deserved his chance at Preston.

“I thought he did very well there too and, for me, he was very harshly treated.

“They seemed to want success too quickly and got rid of him – but he has gone into Shrewsbury and done a good job.

“He is proving to be a good manager and I’m sure he and Shrewsbury can enjoy some good success together.”

Smith expects to switch on and watch his former player aim to bring Shrewsbury a first promotion within the Football League for 15 years – but admitted he is not the man to speak to regarding play-off finals.

“It’s no good asking me about them because I think I’ve been in five or six as a manager or a coach and lost the lot,” he added.

“They haven’t been very good to me – so let’s hope it’s a better story for Paul and Shrewsbury on Saturday.”