Dave Edwards: Full credit to professional Shrewsbury avoiding FA Cup slip-up as building blocks continue
There was a lot going against Shrewsbury Town for that tie at South Shields but they got the job done well.
This was a real banana skin in the north east. I wrote last week how the hosts are a really good team that play good football and are flying at the top of National League North, used to winning games.
Add in the early kick-off factor in front of the TV cameras looking for an upset and it would not be easy.
I read interviews with Michael Appleton beforehand where he was trying to dumb it down - suggesting maybe Town are the underdogs, but that was never the case. It would have been disastrous to lose that FA Cup first round tie.
It was a tough match but improving Shrewsbury gave a very professional performance where they were clinical in the right moments.
South Shields helped them to an extent because they were a very open team that tried to play passing football and were expansive. So when Town did win the ball they were well organised. The strategy about acting when they won the ball back worked really well for Town.
