Dave Edwards: One down and two to go in Shrewsbury Town's defining run

I was interested to see how Paul Hurst would set up, as Port Vale needed to win the game and a draw wouldn’t have been too bad for Shrewsbury.

But in typical Paul Hurst fashion they went after them early. They started the game well and Tom Bayliss had a good chance that resulted in a corner.

One thing Shrewsbury have definitely improved under Hurst are the set pieces and the creativity.

It was a well-worked set piece and ended with a terrific cross from Mal Benning, who continues to impress at left-back, and it was a smart finish from Dan Udoh at the back post.

It was a very tight angle and almost looked like the ball didn’t go in, but it got them off to a perfect start.

After that, Port Vale started to ramp up a bit of pressure and Town really needed Marko Marosi, who throughout the game made at least three fabulous saves.

He’s really proven his worth to the team. In big moments in big games, he produces.

To get that second goal in the second half was massive to take some pressure off.

Tom Bloxham is another player who is finding some form at the moment and it was a sharp finish – although it was possibly offside.

Hurst will be disappointed with the manner in which they conceded the goal to allow Port Vale a way back into the game. A long throw that was not cleared properly, which made it a lot more nervy at the end of the game.

But I thought Shrewsbury remained calm and never looked under a huge amount of pressure, although I’m sure the fans that travelled would have felt it, as well as the manager and staff on the sidelines.

In general, they managed the game really well. It was all about the points, not the performance, and in a really important week they’ve given themselves the best possible start.

They’ve created a bit of a gap to the relegation zone, which is the most important thing at the moment.

The next two games are very big and very winnable. Both at home, taking on Exeter tonight and Carlisle at the weekend, they are huge results that can drag you away from trouble. If Town win them both, that pretty much secures safety for next season, especially beating teams around you.

It’s been a tough run of games but these ones are very important. If they play with the same intensity, and maybe a little bit of luck along the way, they can enjoy the international break with the Bolton game rescheduled.

Shrewsbury’s home form is always half decent, but it hasn’t quite been that way under Hurst, while the away form has been sensational.

The fans at home are very good and stick with the players. They need to utilise that massively tonight against Exeter, on a tough Tuesday night, and then again at the weekend against Carlisle.

It will be nice to Hurst to properly announce his home return with a couple of back-to-back victories to improve that record and take Town closer to safety.