Dave Edwards: Shrewsbury Town must learn to suffer away from home to end woes

That will be hugely frustrating for Michael Appleton. One thing that surprised me was the decision to stick with the same tactical setup. I had a feeling he might do so after the success against Harrogate, but MK Dons away is a completely different challenge to playing Harrogate at home - particularly against a side reduced to 10 men.

I felt they needed three midfielders. If you are going to play with a back four, you need legs and numbers in the middle of the pitch.

MK Dons are a very good footballing side and Stadium MK is a huge pitch. That extra space plays right into their hands, particularly in transition. Shrewsbury looked vulnerable whenever they attacked because when moves broke down, MK Dons were able to exploit the space quickly and hurt them with ease.

I was surprised Appleton stuck with the same system. I understand how difficult it is to change things after a big win - you want to keep momentum and reward players - but this felt like a game that required more caution and a more defensively-minded approach just to give yourself a foothold.

The goals conceded were also very poor. That is something a manager can only do so much about. He can set the team up, but poor defending and individual mistakes are things he cannot influence from the sidelines.

The away form is worrying. I said the MK Dons game would be an acid test after the Harrogate win, and that the next two away matches would show how far this side has come. It has not started well.

Cambridge United up next does not make things any easier. They are unbeaten in 12 league matches and have conceded just 22 goals all season. When you compare that with Shrewsbury's record, only 23 goals scored, the third-lowest in the league, it is clear what a difficult task lies ahead.

Shrewsbury have just one away win all season, and the biggest issue has been goals conceded. Thirty-one goals shipped in 13 away matches is the worst record in the division, and it explains why they find themselves where they are in the table.

Away from home, the mindset has to be different - especially for a team in this position. Sometimes you have to be difficult to beat - set up more defensively, sit a little deeper, frustrate the opposition, slow the game down, take time over throw-ins and free-kicks, and use all the so-called dark arts to kill momentum.

There is no pressure to win the game in the first half, the pressure is on the home side. Shrewsbury simply have not been able to manage games in that way. They did not do it against Wolves, and they did not do it at MK Dons.

Hopefully that will change, starting at Cambridge, where resilience has to be the priority. Do not concede early. Get to half-time at 0-0 as a minimum and then see where the game takes you.

On paper, Shrewsbury are expected to lose games like Cambridge away. That is the reality. But it is the manner of defeat that matters to supporters, particularly with things starting to look worrying at the bottom end of the table.

It feels like two from six could go down. Newport have won two of their last four, and Harrison Biggins, a Town player, impressed at the weekend and got on the scoresheet, which is never nice to see, even if you want your own players to do well.

There are some sides in dreadful form down there, but unfortunately Shrewsbury are one of them.

Harrogate, for example, are the weakest side I have seen in League Two this season, and you would expect others to pull away from them. Shrewsbury have to start picking up results, grinding out points away from home and winning their home games.

There is a huge month coming up in the fight to move clear of the bottom two. It is hard, really hard, to do that when you are in the form Shrewsbury are in. Unfortunately, the club has become used to losing games, and that needs to change quickly.