Mistakes will happen with our style – Shrewsbury No.2 Aaron Wilbraham
Assistant boss Aaron Wilbraham has stressed Shrewsbury’s management can accept players’ mistakes as Town want to play attractive football.
Defensive slips cost Town dear in a disappointing 2-0 home reverse to out-of-form Doncaster Rovers on Saturday, where ex-Town striker Fejiri Okenabirhie struck early against the run of play.
Okenabirhie’s goal came after an Ethan Ebanks-Landell slip after a short pass from Ro-Shaun Williams, and Taylor Richards wrapped up the points late on after Brad Walker, who was introduced for Williams at half-time, gift-wrapped possession.
Wilbraham conceded Steve Cotterill’s men failed to get going after the break following an encouraging first half, but said errors are part and parcel of the game a Cotterill team wants to play.
“It was nothing to do with the ball from Ro, I don’t think,” Wilbraham said of the opening goal. “I haven’t seen it back myself, but I think Ethan lost his footing and slipped, that was it, it happens, you see it around the country.”
On the second, conceded after a lose Walker touch, Cotterill’s No.2 added: “He was unlucky, obviously he’s a bit rusty, just coming back (from injury) but some of his passing was excellent, he’ll be disappointed at making a mistake but things happen. We want players to play football and they are going to make mistakes in doing that.”
Town shipped six poor goals in two games against Oxford and Doncaster last week following back-to-back clean sheets and an especially impressive shutout at Gillingham seven days prior.
“It’s a strange one, to have two clean sheets and then concede six in two games, we don’t want to do that,” Wilbraham continued.
“You can’t put the two today down to defending, a couple of mistakes, it happens, that was different to Tuesday.
“But we want to get back to defending resolute and strong, definitely.
“There was nothing wrong with the attitude of the players, in the first half we were unlucky not to come in (at half-time) winning the game, never mind being 1-0 down, it was a strange first half.
“The players always turn up, they are always honest, they are an honest group.”
Town are straight back at it tomorrow evening as they tackle the first of their remaining six games this season, with relegation-threatened Wigan heading to Montgomery Waters Meadow.
The resurgent Latics have won three on the spin as they look to avoid the drop and are four points clear of the bottom four heading to Shropshire.
