Paul Hurst hails Shrewsbury Town's heart after late win
Paul Hurst has hailed Shrewsbury's late 2-1 win over AFC Wimbledon as a result Town would not have picked up a few months ago.
Salop were rock-bottom and adrift by six points upon Hurst's arrival in October. but Toto Nsiala's late header chalked up Town's seventh Greenhous Meadow win in 10 games to lift them to 17th, four points clear of safety.
And Hurst described the scrappy, largely uneventful game as one his side would've lost in the days after he took the job.
The boss said: "First and foremost, lets not kid ourselves it was a poor spectacle. Wimbledon are quite direct and have had a lot of success, I'm not criticising them - we couldn't impose what we wanted to do.
"A few times we got it down and looked a much better side. The pitch didn't help, it's still not recovered. It wasn't going to be pretty, conditions were difficult.
"What I am pleased with, and I'd sum it up, if that was when I came in and my first game, we'd have lost that game. that's the biggest thing. We've now got fight and heart, spirit and commitment in the group.
"When it isn't a good game, and in our league, League Two and the Conference, you get a lot of those.
"I don't want to stand and watch that every week. I don't think we will. But if that's what's served up, you have to stay in the game, you have to be committed and the players did that.
"I'm sure the players will go home and say 'that wasn't a great game' but there's an element of pleasure for winning the game. That's what it#'s about, particulalrly in our area, points are crucial, particularly after losing our unbeaten run in midweek."
Nsiala's 89th minute won the points after Tyler Roberts' 65th minute free-kick had Town ahead, before Andy Barcham levelled things three minutes later.
On the defender, who Hurst previously managed at Grimsby, the boss added: "It's a great header and it's funny because we know the size of them, we went through the set pieces yesterday.
"I sat with the crowd in the first-half and there's people getting uptight about not putting the ball in the box. One almost worked but we made the wrong chance.
"From a different set-up Toto's got up and powered a goal in. Probably not one of the things you're expecting too much of against that Wimbledon side.
"Overall a fantastic three points for us."
