Louis Dodds believes Shrewsbury Town earned their luck against Millwall

Town survived a barrage from the hosts to leave The Den with a precious victory courtesy of Dodds' 17th-minute strike.

Goalkeeper Jayson Leutwiler made several key saves, while Adam El-Abd and Jim O'Brien both cleared efforts off the line before Harry Smith and Tony Craig both missed glorious chances to equalise for the hosts late on.

Dodds believes Town's effort in holding out made them deserving of any fortune which fell their way.

"We rode our luck a few times but the harder you work the luckier you get," he said. "That's a mantra we might go with. Hopefully this result can have a snowball effect.

"It's a massive result. I think you can see, game by game, we have been getting better and slowly making small progressions but as a team on Saturday we stood up as men."

Though victory was not enough to lift them off the bottom of League One, they are now just two points from safety and Dodds credited new boss Paul Hurst with igniting belief among players.

"There is a belief in us now," he said. "They (Hurst and his staff) have come in and told us what they want and the lads are repaying them.

"Training has got a bit sharper. We are taking it into the games and getting fitter. Watch this space. We are going to start creeping up the table.

"We have always had it in us, but you need the results to keep it going. Everyone was writing us off before Millwall, saying we were going to get done four or five. To win 1-0 in a hostile atmosphere is delightful."

Dodds' goal, his fifth of the campaign, also snapped a three-game drought for Town, the division's second lowest-scorers.

"It is a relief," admitted Dodds. "Hopefully I can build on that now. We have spoken about it as a team. If we keep clean sheets we will get a chance. It is just up to the strikers to have a bit of composure."