Paul Hurst: It's not all doom and gloom at Shrewsbury

The Town chief has guided his side to just two wins on the road but a recent slump in form has Shrews just a point above the drop, writes Lewis Cox.

While last weekend's home defeat to Bolton – just the second Meadow defeat of his tenure – yielded no points, Hurst took encouragement from a positive first-half display.

"We're going into it not lacking the confidence that people might think because of the results we've had," the boss said.

"Although we ultimately lost the game last Saturday I didn't go away from it thinking 'we're rubbish and we've got no chance'. It was a reality check in who we were playing and the run they're on.

"If you'd have seen the first half and didn't know any league positions, no-one would tell me there would be a massive difference in that.

"It's certainly not all doom and gloom for us yet and we look forward to this game.

"But we need to be looking forward, it's our immediate future that'll decide where we end up. There are things before and since I came that play a part in that, but the season starts now. This is the position you're in, you've got seven games to stay up."

Hurst identified Mat Sadler as the man that embodies the kind of spirit he wants in a player at Shrewsbury.

The former Birmingham man has been a consistent presence in the heart of Town's backline and has worn the captain's armband under Hurst. He and Toto Nsiala forged a fearsome partnership as Town embarked on a six-game unbeaten run recently.

It was the sort of centre-half pairing that hosts Rovers have enjoyed themselves, with skipper Tom Lockyer and on-loan Stoke man Ryan Sweeney proving an inspired duo. The manager assessed his squad yesterday as Shrews played a practice match ahead of the Memorial Stadium trip.

Town welcome Millwall to the Meadow three days later.

"A few lads find it easier to push themselves in training," said the boss.

"The number one person in terms of consistency is Mat Sadler, an experienced lad and one that doesn't get flustered, just plays his game.

"Does he make every pass correct? No.

"But in terms of knowing what you're going to get, he's the standout one.

"Not always the best player, but definitively not the worst.

"We've got a squad of players, players are there but some haven't played for a long time other than the Telford game."

Goalkeeper Jayson Leutwiler was at fault for Bolton's opener last week while Adam El-Abd was caught in possession as the Trotters sealed the points.

Hurst admitted: "There have been mistakes, I don't want them to happen but they do.

"It's for me whether these players can be trusted, whether it's a one-off or a more regular occurrence.

"We've got the capability to get the points needed but who knows? Football's so difficult to predict.

"How many points to stay up? At one point it looked like a hell of a lot more than 50, now it may be enough.

"But if everyone wins on Saturday it'd be back above that."