Steve Cotterill: Shrewsbury signings need time
Steve Cotterill is keen to bed in new Shrewsbury Town signings to give them a better chance at being judged after his side drew at home to Fleetwood.
Salop shared the spoils for a third game on the spin as Luke Leahy's penalty shortly after half-time cancelled out Anthony Pilkington's headed first-half opener.
Cotterill's men were much improved after the break following a poor final half hour of the first period, as the manager introduced early January loan signing Saikou Janneh for Tyrese Fornah and shifted his side to 4-3-3, with Leahy returning to midfield.
And it was the hosts who finished the game the stronger as Ethan Ebanks-Landell and Daniel Udoh went close to a late winner.
Town's latest draw - a fifth in seven in the league - lifts them a place to 16th but the gap to the dropzone remains four points.
There were to be no Shrewsbury debuts for deadline day signings Tom Flanagan, from Sunderland, and Newcastle loanee Matty Bondswell, who both remained unused substitutes.
Cotterill admitted he is keen to let them become more familiar with team-mates and a style of play before their introduction.
"You can carry on wondering!" Cotterill smiled. "At the end of the day a lot of the boys have been here and worked very hard to get some of the patterns we had in the first half but didn't score and then had in the second half and did score.
"They all know their jobs, so people are better off being through the door a little while before being thrown in the deep end.
"Otherwise, what happens in our game, is they get judged very, very quickly. We don't want players who come through the door to be judged very quickly.
"I'd rather they understand what it takes to play in the team. In the long run you get a better result - experience tells me that."
Cotterill felt his side responded to a 'stodgy' first half with a vastly improved second half display in challenging conditions at a blustery Montgomery Waters Meadow, which hampered things every time the ball left the deck.
"With our second-half performance I think we could've gone and won the game," the manager added of his side's performance. "The couple of chances we had cleared off the line in the second half could've gone in.
"If we'd put a complete 90-minute performance in I think we win the game today.
"In the first half I thought it was a little bit stodgy, in the game, I didn't think there was too much happening.
"We're disappointed with the goal, we should've scored before they did (through Bowman).
"It isn't really a goal that we concede but players had got the wrong side. In the build-up I could see it happening, if he picked the cross out.
"The disappointing thing was I saw the goal coming from the little phase of play from our throw-in.
"But when you come back out in the second half - to only have that 15-minute window to correct everything to get back in the game - I thought the players were brilliant at half-time.
"And in the second half I thought we were great and deserved to win the game. I thought we were the team that would go and win it. I'm slightly disappointed it's 1-1 but I always say if we can't win don't get beat."
Cotterill said of the conditions: "It was an incredibly difficult game. You don't mind playing in the rain, you don't mind it snowing, but you hate the wind as a footballer.
"There's no room for error as a footballer, you can't make a mistake, you want to be an away team in conditions like this, especially if you get your noses in front which they did.
"But our boys were magnificent to a man, in the second half when you're up against it."
Goalscorer Leahy returned to the side after missing the AFC Wimbledon clash after results of a scan showed swelling on the medial ligament in his knee but no damage, to alleviate fears of a Josh Vela-type lay-off.
Cotterill said of Bristol City loan youngster Janneh, who impressed: "The longer Seiks is with us (will be better) - he's still a young boy, very formative with his knowledge. I think he had a great impact.
"There was a change of formation as well, it could've easily been Tom Bloxham going on to the other side with Dan (Udoh) on this (left) side.
"All in all I'm really pleased with his contribution, as I am with Tyrese (Fornah) in the first half. Tyrese did nothing wrong in the first half, but it was a change I needed to make."
