Paul Hurst bemoans Shrewsbury Town's 'step back' against Fleetwood Town
Shrewsbury Town chief Paul Hurst reflected on a 'backwards step' as Salop fell to a third straight League One defeat.
A forgettable 1-0 Greenhous Meadow reversal against familiar foes Fleetwood Town saw Salop fall to 23rd in the division.
For former Grimsby boss Hurst, it was the first home goal Town conceded under his stewardship and the first time they had tasted defeat at the Meadow.
Fleetwood's winning goal came inside the first 10 minutes.
And the boss said: "We spoke about having tough games and decent performances. We came here with a good record and only conceded the one goal today.
"It seemed there was a lack of confidence, urgency and back to the negatives that had been spoken about when I first came in.
"Too much going backwards and messing around in areas you don't need to - it felt like a step back today."
Town's new signing Toto Nsiala was not eligible for the match, as Hurst cursed being 'punished for buying a player'.
While forward Ivan Toney, joint-top scorer with seven goals, played his last game for the club after the boss dismissed a loan extension.
Hurst added: "The first-half wasn't good enough, I can totally understand the frustration in the ground in the first period.
"In the second-half we had a bit of a go and on another day something falls for you but we haven't made the keeper work.
"It was an improvement but I've just said to the players, we've got to see the importance of every minute of every game.
"That's another game gone now, we need points. We can't be thinking 'oh we'll get it next time'. It looked nervy and edgy and I don't really know why."
