Dave Edwards: Barnsley win key to providing Shrewsbury fans with some cheer

Before the trip to South Yorkshire, Town had not won in 15 third-tier matches, and they were in desperate need for some positivity. 

I think it was very important for Michael Appleton to get his first win as head coach as well but for the players too. Football is very habitual. 

If you are winning games it becomes a habit, and when you keep losing it becomes difficult to break. 

To go away from home, and I know Barnsley are not having their best season, and get the win was important. I think you are starting to see some positive signs of the way Michael Appleton wants to play. 

I have seen it in little spells during the games he has been in charge of. 

I was at the Reading game, I thought they did really well in the first half of that match. I know he was bitterly disappointed with the performance against Northampton, and rightly so. 

Both goals were very well manufactured and finished. That is John Marquis up to 12 goals for the season, which, in a side that has been relegated from League One, and has only won eight times, is impressive. 

It could have been more as well. There are missed penalties in there. He certainly is a striker who does well from balls into the box. 

He can find himself in good positions, and has the ability to finish first time. 

That is where the majority of his goals have come from. I would say 90 per cent of my goals were all one-touch finishes. It is just about making sure you have good movement, and you then strike it instinctively. I would say Marquis is similar to that. 

There were times when Shrewsbury did have to weather the storm, but there were so many good moments in there as well. Hopefully, they can finish the season in this manner with a bit of momentum going into next campaign. 

The players should be playing for the shirt, playing for their futures, and then we can have a bit more positivity going forward. 

Appleton finds himself in a strange situation. He has been given until the end of the season. He has come out publicly and said that he expects to know where his future lies by the end of this week. 

You would have thought it might have been wrapped already. There are things going on behind the scenes, which the club are dealing with, and that is impacting the decision. 

I am sure they will want to get a deal done because he has got a terrific track record and lots of experience at the level. 

There is an element of me that thinks Shrews are very lucky to have him leading the team. 

His style of football is exciting. I played against his teams numerous times, and they were always hard to come up against. 

They keep the ball, they move the opposition around, and while it might be hard for Salop to do in League One with the players they have, in League Two, they will be a lot more competitive, and hopefully, they will be able to dominate the ball in a lot of the games - which makes him a good fit. 

He also brings through young players and makes them better. It will be a great time to be in the academy as there is someone in situ that is willing to put you in if he thinks you are good enough.