Premier League in approval for Shrewsbury Town
Shrewsbury Town’s promotion charge isn’t just the talk of the town – it’s also providing a regular topic of conversation at a Premier League training ground.
Shrewsbury Town’s promotion charge isn’t just the talk of the town – it’s also providing a regular topic of conversation at a Premier League training ground.
The presence of Marc Tierney, Grant Holt and David Fox ensures a blue and amber core has been at the heart of Norwich completing their Premier League survival mission with plenty to spare.
Tierney and Holt each featured in a Town promotion play-off final, while Fox had a brief loan spell at Gay Meadow on the club’s return to the Football League in 2004 following a brief flirtation with the Conference.
And Tierney revealed the Canaries trio regularly reflect on their Shrewsbury pasts.
They are now revelling in the current success of their former club as they stand on the cusp of an historic promotion.
“All three of us loved our time at Shrewsbury,” said the 26-year-old left back, who is currently two weeks into his rehabilitation from a groin operation which prematurely ended his first season dining at the top table of English football.
“It’s easy for players to come up with throwaway lines about how good a time they have had at a club.
“But nobody has ever had a bad word to say about Shrewsbury.
“I think it’s genuine and that says a lot about the club.
“I certainly had a fantastic time there and will always remember the role they played in getting me where I am today.”
Tierney couldn’t have come any closer to bringing long overdue success to Shropshire’s sole Football League club during his two year stint, having been involved in the two seasons which ended in gut-wrenching play-off final defeats.
Having signed from Oldham just four months earlier, Tierney found himself sent off during the final throes of the 3-1 reverse to Bristol Rovers in 2007.
He then began the 2008-09 campaign – after a summer of recruitment which saw the arrival of Holt – under boss Paul Simpson, before leaving to join Colchester ahead of a fresh dose of Wembley heartache with Town at the hands of Gillingham.
And those narrow misses offered the tenacious left back an insight into what victory over Dagenham on Saturday would mean to the club and its supporters.
Tierney said: “Everyone is desperate for success and I’m really chuffed to see that everything is going so well there.
“The first season we got to the play-off final we were very much the underdogs of the division.
“But the club has developed with Mr Turner doing a fantastic job and they are now spoken about as the favourites in that division.
“I think they have outgrown League Two and it’s now just a case of the lads holding their nerve for one more game.
“There will be a bit of pressure because I have seen all the reports of a sell out and the home fans taking over the away end.
“There is going to be a really big crowd who will be full of expectation.
“But they just have to keep doing what has got them into this position and they will be fine.
“I remember scoring one of my very rare goals against Dagenham at home when I was at Shrewsbury so, hopefully, somebody can pop up with another one on Saturday.
“It doesn’t matter how scruffy it is.
“When you get into this position it’s just all about getting the win and the job done and I really hope they do it.”
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