Paul Hurst: Shrewsbury Town must overcome the odds once again
Boss Paul Hurst has told his Shrewsbury players they must rally against the odds to continue their unbeaten run and League One promotion push.
Town have matchday captain Abu Ogogo suspended for four games after his red card in a fiery incident at Northampton on Tuesday, while fellow midfielder Ben Godfrey is expected to miss up to 14 days with a hamstring injury.
Hurst’s men extended their unbeaten run to six games in all competitions with the 1-1 draw at Sixfields Stadium, but missed the chance to take top spot in their game in hand over Blackburn.
And the Town chief conceded he will have to shuffle his options ahead of Saturday’s visit of 19th-placed AFC Wimbledon.
“Yes it could be reshuffle. Straight away I’ve got something in my head that we could try,” Hurst said. “So we’ll see. There’s no point crying about it,” said Hurst. “We might not be happy about it, but we’ve got to get on with it and that’s the way it is.
“Like when we lost Junior (Brown) earlier in the season. If we’d have just packed in we’d have been relegated. We haven’t and we’re fighting. We will continue to do so. It’s a concern. I’ve just said to the players that, against the odds, it’s something we’ve got to contend with and deal with.”
Town have been relatively fortunate with injuries this season and have only lost Junior Brown for a significant length of time.
Ogogo’s ban is standalone in League One, meaning the skipper will not miss the Checkatrade Trophy final at Wembley.
Meanwhile, Hurst said that a big effort was needed at Montgomery Waters Meadow on Saturday, where Town can again go top with Blackburn not playing.
He added: “It’s not easy. I’ve said before that when you get an injury often you get another injury in that same position or in this case an injury and a suspension.
“I said to the players that it’s a squad game, I’ve said that from the start.
“Yes it’s probably not going to be ideal but we have to learn to deal with it. We’ve got to deal with it.
“Whoever gets the nod, and collectively we’ve got to put in a big effort at home against
Wimbledon. We’ve also had to play part of a game with 10 men, so things are staking up against us.
“But we have to come out fighting.”
