Shropshire Star

Dave Edwards: Shrewsbury Town players have let down Sam Ricketts

Dave Edwards admits Shrewsbury Town players have let down manager Sam Ricketts with their poor form this season.

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Town have won just one of their first 11 League One games, leaving them 22nd after a quarter of the league season.

Midfielder Edwards, a former Wolves and Wales team-mate of Ricketts', accepts that the team have not done enough to better their lowly position.

Ricketts has been unable to guide Shrewsbury to a home league victory in six attempts at Montgomery Waters Meadow and faces severe criticism from sections of supporters but Edwards feels players are responsible.

"Of course I feel their frustration, we're not winning games of football and whenever that happens the person at the top of the tree, which is the gaffer, comes in for criticism," said Pontesbury midfielder Edwards.

"At the same time I do feel we've let him down as players, not with our work ethic, I just feel performances on the pitch we haven't done enough.

"I know we've been unlucky but I don't like to talk about luck, you make your own luck.

"I've watched every single home game and I'm baffled we haven't won a game because I believe we're far better than every single team we've played here but we haven't been able to show it and that's down to the 11 on the pitch and lads who came on.

"We're good enough to beat Swindon Town at home, especially when two goals up, it's down to the lads who cross the white line."

Edwards, 34, made a scoring return to league action against Swindon, netting from distance to put Town 3-1 up, but the hosts could not hang on.

Edwards confirmed the Town squad were full behind their boss. He added: "Whoever was in charge, as a group of lads we will get behind whoever was in charge and Sam Ricketts is no different.

"We all enjoy playing for him, we love playing for him, and we see how hard he works at the training ground, before and after games.

"We're desperate to get the results that we feel he deserves."

The experienced midfielder continued: "It's difficult because fans aren't in the stadium.I think they have to make their views across social media, radio, whatever it is, that's where they voice their opinion.

"If they could come to the game they could voice their opinion. I think it could've helped us, like against Swindon, they would've definitely helped, giving us a little bit more towards the end.

"We've really missed them this year at home, our home form has shown that so we can't wait to have them back."

Edwards insisted the Town dressing room remains united. "There's no finger-pointing in there, we do everything as a team and we've got to stick together to make it right," he said.

"Football comes in cycles, when you're losing games of football it's hard to get out of, I feel like we'd broken the back of that over the last 10 days from the Burton game.

"I don't feel that (a lack of confidence or belief) in the changing rooms or training ground."I've been in dressing rooms where it has been a problem, you're not winning games and all of a sudden people go within themselves and you see a shadow of a player because they are not brave enough to play their normal game.

"I don't think that's a problem."