Hectic spell can help spark Shrewsbury, says John Askey
John Askey believes his Shrewsbury players will be motivated for a hectic and potentially decisive period
Town play four games in 14 days in all competitions, beginning today at home to Gillingham in League One – with Tuesday’s clash at Walsall the first of six league games in October.
The schedule is a stark contrast to September, where Town did not play a midweek match and instead had a week’s break between games.
Former Macclesfield chief Askey sees the upcoming period as ‘vital’ in his side’s season. Town lie 20th in the third tier after one win from the first nine fixtures.
“I always think this is when you start to get going,” said Askey.
“The games settle down a little bit more and hopefully the results start coming because it’ll be Saturday-Tuesday, and you soon start climbing the table or become adrift.
“It’s a vital time.”
Askey feels his players should thrive on the relentless run of fixtures as they prefer matchdays to training sessions.
The boss is fully aware that it is time his Salop side begin to deliver the points return that some of their promising displays have merited.
He added: “As a player it’s what you want, less training and more matches. As a player it’s what you look forward to.
“I’ve never found a problem with it, whether I’ve been playing or managing, it’s the motivation for players.
“We hope it’s like a new period as regards results. Performances overall have been good but it’s about putting points on the table and that’s our aim.
“Hopefully in the next month we’ll be sitting in a better position.”
Askey added: “Training’s been good since I came in, but we tried to lift the tempo again after the Scunthorpe result.
“Hopefully going into today’s game it’s let one or two know that you can’t rest, you’ve got to keep pushing, and we’ve got to get better. They’ve done OK in most games but we’ve got to improve.”
