Shrewsbury verdict: Target achieved but Town must improve

There was a solemn and understated feeling around Montgomery Waters Meadow as the curtain came down on the season.

Despair spread through the away end, but a quiet, measured applause greeted Sam Ricketts and his squad for the ultimate effort of staving off relegation.

With the dust settling on Town’s fourth consecutive season in League One – a feat worth noting and appreciating if progression can be made – there is time to take stock on the final standings.

Shrewsbury finished above 21st. The obvious and essential remit. It was job No.1. It took longer than most would have hoped or expected but, ultimately, the priority was achieved.

The eventual finishing position clearly leaves work to be done. To finish 18th is not an achievement for Shrewsbury. It shouldn’t be. Not to a club half an hour from the Championship 12 months ago (the vast chopping and changing taken into consideration). To finish two points above the drop zone is something Town must improve on. This must go down as a season of transition and it cannot be accepted again.

Ricketts’ men could have finished as high as 13th with a win and results going their way on Saturday.

It didn’t come off. The stalemate, as Ricketts said, typified Town in recent games. Doing enough but visibly tired and energy-sapped.

A 13th or 14th-placed finish would have made for an interesting viewpoint.

Really, with just a few points in it, finishing a few places higher would not have made for more of a celebration. It would have looked better in the history books but would have been in the context of a poor League One.

Finishing 18th won’t satisfy Ricketts, his staff and his players. Or it shouldn’t.

Town’s FA Cup run was impressive and brought great memories but league form is the bread and butter and the real nod to consistency.

Shrewsbury fans remember 2002/03 for its Cup highs. They also remember dropping out of the Football League at the end of that season.

There are grounds to suggest that this season was a big missed opportunity from the club’s point of view. Nobody expected a repeat of last season’s miracle but more stable progression should have been achieved.

When Ricketts was appointed at the beginning of December, Town were 15th, seven points clear of the drop and 10 points off a play-off place.

The boss will be disappointed that the gap between his team and the drop did not increase and the gap between his team and the top six did not decrease.

But, over a long nine-month season and 46 league games, there is one thing that wins out – consistency.

The more consistent teams finish above the less consistent teams and Town have been the 18th most consistent side this season.

There is potential at the club to push on and achieve things. The manager knows he will have to get things right in this important transfer window to have a shot at doing so next season.

Ricketts must assemble an ambitious, hungry group of players in a more streamlined squad who are all ready pull in the same direction – upwards.

The Town chief has suggested that the final 16-or-so games of the season – pretty much since January signings Ro-Shaun Williams and Tyrese Campbell came into the team – Town have found more consistency in their performances.

It hasn’t always led to the required results but improved performances were key to the ultimately crucial victories on the road at Southend and Gillingham in March and April.

Newly-promoted sides Accrington and Wycombe finished above Town on limited resources and Shrews must look for improvements on that.

But the boss has earned his chance to go about his summer business and mould a Ricketts Shrewsbury Town squad.

He had January and showed encouraging signs of recruitment but he will need to excel this summer to get off to a flyer come August.

The 0-0 outcome against the Saddlers got the job done. Salop fans packed out Montgomery Waters Meadow expecting a Walsall relegation party and they enjoyed rubbing their rivals’ noses in it.

It was a 90 minutes befitting of the season. Another draw (16) meant there were almost as many as defeats this year (18).

There were rare flashes of imagination and quality but not enough. Ultimately the players cannot be accused of not putting a shift it. It has been apparent for a few weeks now they are running on empty.

The last word of the final analysis piece of 2018/19 goes to Mat Sadler.

The club captain, longest serving player and fans’ favourite has shown loyalty and commitment all too uncommon in the lower leagues today.

He is 34 and in the twilight of his career but he is a club man who loved Shrewsbury and was committed to seeing out his playing days in blue and amber before moving into coaching and beyond.

He is most definitely not over the hill. He is not getting slower, pace has never been his key asset.

It was a real shame to see Shrewsbury’s favourite Brummie announce he was leaving after the match.

But we could all sense it was on the cards. He hadn’t made a starting XI for three months and that would have hurt him deeply.

For whatever reason it didn’t work between Sadler and Ricketts and it leaves a sour taste. The skipper said he’ll be back, in one form or another, in the future.

Best of luck Mat, thanks for being a gent and enjoy the memories.