Play-off final run gave Shrewsbury Town a taste of success and club want more – Sam Ricketts

Town defied the odds under Paul Hurst in the 2017/18 campaign and, after competing in the top two all season, went down in extra time against Rotherham at Wembley.

A difficult campaign was to follow, firstly under the stewardship of John Askey before Ricketts’ December appointment, by avoiding the drop and finishing 18th.

But the Town boss believes the taste of success has given everyone involved the hunger for more – and he has the desire to bring that to Shrewsbury.

“What’s happened is the club has been superbly run for a number of years,” said Ricketts.

“Last year it had a taste of success which I think has whetted everyone’s appetite.

“I’m no different, we want that success. We want to have it on a regular basis and not just an unbelievable season and then going back to how the club historically has been.

“We want to have that sustained success season after season which is why everyone was disappointed with how this season had gone on the back of last season.

“But you can understand why with such a big turnover. The whole idea is sustained long-term success.”

Ricketts is yet to make any new signings at this early stage of summer but wants to assemble most of his Town squad by the pre-season trip to Portugal at the beginning of July.

And the Town boss wants to follow the mould that brought Shrewsbury success two seasons ago, by attracting players with the hunger to impress.

Ricketts will take extra time to meet each potential signing to ensure they are the type of individual he wants at Montgomery Waters Meadow.

“I like to see all my players, I like to meet them face to face to understand their character,” he added.

“Ultimately we need players who are hungry and want to achieve something in the game, go above and beyond rather than a player going through the motions. I want players who aspire to be as good as they can be.

Town are yet to officially confirm the departure of first-team coach Danny Coyne after talks with Ricketts.

It is understood the boss is undergoing a revamp of his backroom staff and more changes could lie ahead before the team return for pre-season.

Shrewsbury look set to miss out on a move for Barrow left-back Dan Jones, with Fleetwood leading the race for his signature.