Steve Cotterill: Shrewsbury didn’t follow the plan

Town’s run of three straight wins and just a single defeat in seven games ended at the automatic promotion chasing Dons, who prevailed through a goal in either half.

The hosts second goal, scored by Scott Twine nine minutes after the interval, was laced with controversy as Town had midfielder Tyrese Fornah down injured on the edge of their own box.

But the game swung on MK’s 17th-minute opener, as Mo Eisa converted less than a minute after Ryan Bowman had sent a chance wide for the visitors. Cotterill said his side had been drilled on the manner of Dons’ opener.

“We’d said about being attacked through the middle, said about them being on the shoulders, we worked on it through the week with our shape,” Cotterill said.

“So we were disappointed really, with the goal we conceded. Tyrese ended up closing down and leaving that critical area in front of our back three or back four.

“They ended up getting the space in there that they shouldn’t really have had and with another through ball it ends up in the back of the net.

“It’s not anything we came into the game (not knowing), we came into the game fully prepared.

“I said to the boys afterwards there was nothing there we hadn’t worked on in the week, there’s been no surprises but we’ve ended up getting beat.”

Town dropped a place to 16th in League One but the gap to 12th remains just three points with five games remaining.

Salop were unable to complete a double on Dons, who are unbeaten in 13 games and have won seven from eight and climbed within a point of the top two in the process.

Cotterill’s side saw off MK 1-0 at Montgomery Waters Meadow in mid-October for a first clean sheet of the season. “On the turnovers we’ve had enough opportunities where we can keep then ball,” the manager said.

“We’ve probably had more possession there and lost than the possession we had in the home game and won 1-0.

“It just goes to show, I suppose, that it’s nice to have possession but it doesn’t mean everything.”

Cotterill’s theory was correct as his side managed just 25 per cent of the ball in beating Dons in October, less than the 34 per cent against the possession-based side on Saturday.

Town, meanwhile, will wait to discover the extent of a knee injury to captain Ethan Ebanks-Landell after the defender is assessed this week.

Ebanks-Landell came off at half-time against his former club MK Dons and Cotterill revealed afterwards the stopper has been playing through knee pain for a number of games. Town switched systems to a back four in the second half, with Matt Pennington and Tom Flanagan the centre-back pairing.