Shropshire Star

Sam Ricketts: Shrewsbury need clean sheets

Frustrated Shrewsbury boss Sam Ricketts bemoaned his side's poor defending as they again gave up a lead to draw.

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Town remain in the drop zone in League One after the 1-1 draw against mid-table Burton, as both goals arrived inside 11 minutes.

Tyrese Campbell's first goal for the club had the hosts ahead but David Templeton equalised with an unmarked header just three minutes later.

Ricketts declared his team's defending not good enough as the diminutive attacker was afforded space in the box to head into the top corner, as Alex Rodman did the previous weekend at Bristol Rovers.

Town remain 22nd, without a win in nine league games.

Ricketts said: "I was bitterly disappointed with the goal. I was telling the players we need clean sheets.

"If we kept a clean sheet this week we'd have won the game, exactly the same as last week.

"This week was a ball into the box which we have to defend better. We can't allow free headers at the back post like that.

"Our two centre-halves end up on the floor, not through a foul, you have to be better defending that. You can't give goals away.

"Especially after just going up, you have to be solid and resolute when we're fighting and scrapping for the game because of the stage of the season.

"It's not going to be a great spectacle, unfortunately. I'd love it to be but we're not in that moment of the season.

"But we should be winning the, we've still drawn and not lost, but I want to win."

Ricketts, whose side are inside the bottom four on goal difference, felt his side came on strong late on in what was a largely uneventful second half.

The Brewers' Lucas Akins had the best chance of the second period, firing wide after breaking past Town's defence.

But the boss sees optimism that his side were the team pushing for the points late on.

He added: "It's a point, another game unbeaten, yes I wanted three.

"We're in a situation where we have to grind out results. Burton are a good side, it was a good performances, it wasn't great because we didn't win the game.

"But there were really good signs coming back into the game, in the last 10 or 15 minutes we were the ones on the front foot.

"I wanted to break on them a little more, a bit like the first goal, a mistake by them but the whole idea was trying to suck the centre-backs out and flipping it down the sides for Tyrese and Shaun to run on to.

"At times it worked really well but we couldn't get as much presser higher as I'd have liked.

"I was delighted with the players' character and desire to fight and battle to finish the game stronger. They were slowing the game down to get the draw, we were trying to get the win."