Analysis: Another repeat as Shrewsbury Town’s errors are punished again

It is those mistakes which have plagued Salop’s play all season, and in a game which at the halfway point they were in complete control of, to come away with nothing is gut-wrenching for everyone involved at the football club.

They have managed to lose six times out of the first seven league games, and it sees them sitting second bottom of the League One table with an uphill battle on their hands if they want to stay in the division this time out.

Like last week, Town should have come away with something from Nottinghamshire, but their failure to do so once again will leave supporters feeling dispirited and hopeless.

They looked assured for a large proportion of this game, and they should have put some daylight between them and their hosts, such was their dominance in the early stages.

But the failure to do so, combined with Toto Nsiala’s mistake in the 49th minute, was the turning point.

It was an inexcusable error from the defender, and it put his team right up against it.

These are common in football, made at all levels, but Shrewsbury make at least one blunder every week at the moment which makes their predicament easy to understand.

From the moment Mansfield’s first goal went into the back of the net, you just had that feeling of ‘here we go again’.

And after missing a huge chance to net a late winner when George Lloyd headed at Christy Pym from close range, they were punished – something the Salop fans have become accustomed to seeing over the opening seven games of this campaign.

Town had not scored a goal away from home yet this season before the clash at Field Mill, but that changed when Leo Castledine gave Paul Hurst’s side the lead in the second minute.

Luca Hoole’s cross was half-cleared by Deji Oshilaja and it fell to the Chelsea loanee at the back post as he finished past Pym.

It was Castledine’s second goal in a Town shirt and he arguably should have had a third moments later when he headed wide from Funso Ojo’s corner – it was a free header inside the six-yard box.

The first 35 minutes of the clash was as well as Town had played all season. They looked assured in possession, a lot of which they had in the host’s final third, but could not quite capitalise on that advantage to give themselves a two-goal buffer.

The hosts came into the game more as the half wore on as Lee Gregory and Stephen McLaughlin saw efforts go wide from set- pieces.

On the stroke of half-time, Mansfield had a chance to equalise, Keanu Baccus getting the better of Mal Benning but his effort was blocked on the goalline by a combination of Nsiala and Morgan Feeney.

The home side wanted a penalty, but referee Lewis Smith said there was nothing in it. The hosts were level within four minutes of the second half, though.

Nsiala, with a moment he would not want to see again in a hurry, took down Lee Gregory in the Town penalty area when the forward was heading away from goal.

He gave referee Smith no choice but to point to the spot and Gregory converted.

Savin was forced to make a save by Stephen Quinn as his effort came through a crowd of bodies – he kept it out with his legs.

George Lloyd had a superb chance to win it for Salop with five minutes remaining as he headed Tom Bloxham’s cross from close range straight at Pym.

And almost instantly, they were made to pay for that when substitute Aaron Lewis raced through to put Mansfield in front for the first time in the clash and, despite seven minutes added on, it finished 2-1.

Hurst said after the match he felt like he had done this very same interview before.

For the first time in his tenure as boss he looked flat, and the Town captain Carl Winchester, who came out to speak to the press after him looked broken. He was excellent and he did not deserve to be on the losing team.

The captain was not the only one who had a decent game in Nottinghamshire, the issue is if you keep making basic errors and giving the opposition a way back into the game, it does not matter how well you play as you will always be up against it.

The outlook for Town’s season gets more bleak by the week.