Comment: Will Shrewsbury Town's front-runners be prolific enough in front of goal?

Alex Rodman and Stefan Payne were key attacking players for Paul Hurst’s side in what was almost a fairytale season for Shrewsbury.

Now, as management and players have moved on, new Town chief John Askey is hoping that the pair, who left this summer, don’t remind fans of the ability they possess today with new club Bristol Rovers.

Rodman and Payne played 55 and 54 games, respectively, for Town last season. More games than Shrews are likely to play in this entire campaign.

More tellingly, they netted 23 goals between them. Payne top scored with 14, a decent return, and Rodman’s nine was not to be sniffed at – particularly when his priority was galloping up and down the left trying to create.

The pair were in Town’s top five scorers last season, along with Carlton Morris, Jon Nolan and Shaun Whalley – the latter the only one of the quintet to still remain a Shrews player.

The five scored 55 goals between them in all competitions, averaging 11 each. Not bad when you factor two were strikers vying for the lone role in Hurst’s system, two were wingers and one was a central midfielder.

They were responsible for well over half of the 82 goals Shrews scored in 62 games last season.

Naturally, last time around was an extraordinary campaign which will not be re-lived in a hurry. A fantastic nine months where almost everything fell into place.

It wasn’t a free-flowing, heavy scoring promotion bid either. On many occasions Town won by the odd goal, there were stacks of 1-0s.

But today’s return of Rodman and Payne has begged the question – where are the goals going to come from season?

A return of one goal in four league games before last weekend’s trip to Luton had fans worrying that this Salop squad may be a goal-shy one.

It should, however, inspire some confidence that striker Lee Angol and winger Whalley already have two each this term.

Though, as an example, will Angol and Whalley reach that 23-goal mark Rodman and Payne managed last season? It’s a tough ask, as Town aren’t expected to vie for promotion, but it is not implausible.

Beyond that, which five of Askey’s attacking ranks are going to trouble or go further than the double-figure mark this season as the aforementioned quintet achieved?

It is early days but you expect Angol to push that with the start he has made. Aaron Amadi-Holloway has been brought in and vowed to improve his modest previous record.

If those two battle for the regular No.9 role they should aim for double figures.

Alex Gilliead, on the opposite flank to Whalley, should play often enough and certainly has the ability to fashion opportunities for himself.

But, like Amadi-Holloway, his scoring record leaves a little to be desired and he will have to improve it tenfold to reach those heights. In central midfield, where Nolan shone impressively last term, Greg Docherty appears to be the one with attacking instincts and he has already admitted to targetting a lofty goals return.

Take the season before last, 2016/17, where Hurst joined three months in following Micky Mellon’s axing. Town finished 18th, surviving by two points.

Louis Dodds top scored with 10. Ivan Toney managed seven, Junior Brown five, while Tyler Roberts and Freddie Ladapo both got four. That’s just 30 between them.

It will be telling if Town’s five top scorers of this season can get up and around half-a-century or whether they struggle around the 25 to 30 mark.

If Town have a handful of options that know where the net is, life will become easier for Askey.