Paul Hurst has food for thought as Shrewsbury look to combat conditions
Shrewsbury manager Paul Hurst admits he has 'food for thought' on how to set up his Town side to combat the tough Montgomery Waters Meadow pitch condition.
Adverse weather since the turn of the year has meant for a bobbly surface more difficult to play any sort of passing football.
And with eight from 14 league games remaining at home – as well as the Checkatrade Trophy semi-final – the Town boss admits he has some thinking to do on whether to alter his side's style.
The heavy rainfall has meant Shrewsbury have had to find alternative venues to train in recent weeks. The Meadow surface was again a challenge as Rotherham mastered the conditions to come out on top in a poor League One spectacle.
"There's a bit of food for thought for myself in terms of looking at the pitch and how we need to play moving forward, because it's certainly a more difficult surface than it was earlier in the season," Hurst admitted after watching his side lose at home for the second consecutive game.
"The game, overall, was a scrappy affair. Rotherham did things very well and were very professional. It wasn't a game for the purists today."
Town remain top but challengers Wigan are just a point behind with a game in hand. Neither Wigan or Blackburn had league action this weekend.
Hurst, who admitted some of his players were 'run down' ahead of kick-off against the Millers, added: "It is relentless. I've got my own thoughts on our performance levels so I'm not overly concerned.
"We're not daft. We know we're top because of others not playing. We'll see what results come along but one thing is for definite, we're still in a fantastic position."
Hurst's former Rotherham team-mate and Millers chief Paul Warne agreed that the tough surface did not make for a free-flowing afternoon.
He said: "It was a difficult game. A hard game. The pitch was not amazing and did not make for good football for either team.
"It was a game of corner, throw-ins and hard work. I thought on chances created we edged it so we're pleased with a 1-0 win.
"For the first 15 minutes we were good. Shrewsbury are doing really well - they're top of the league – and they came back at us. We weathered the storm and we tried to press and get the second goal. To win 1-0 is great."
