The Verdict: Shrewsbury Town show real progress in draw with Crewe

The statistics tell the story.

They had more than double the shots, more on target, more touches in the opposition box, more big chances and more big chances missed.

The statistic that matters most come the final whistle though is the scoreline, and that was 1-1.

Even so, it felt like a another step forward for Salop, coming a week after their 2-0 win over Northampton.

Backing that up with a strong away performance, and picking up their first point on the road in League Two this season, will have pleased Gavin Cowan and his players.

Crewe are no mugs. They are yet to lose this season, having played seven, won five and drawn two, so a trip to the Mornflake Stadium always looked a tough proposition.

You might have expected a backs-to-the-wall display, with Town sitting deep, weathering the storm and slowing the game down. The opposite was true.

Shrewsbury got on the front foot, created chances and looked dangerous.

All of that came despite late injury blows and disruption pre-match. Josh Ruffels, Josh Davison and Jay Turner-Cook all missed out after picking up knocks in training late on Friday.

The team had worked all week on a specific structure to get a result at Crewe, so having to change it at the last minute was a setback, but to overcome that and get the job done shows real strength of character and professionalism.

Town's two wins this season have both come at the Croud Meadow, so they need to start picking up points on their travels.

Something else they needed to start doing was to make sure that if there is a game they cannot win, they need to make sure they do not lose it.

So as far as both of those things are concerned, it was a positive weekend all round.

They fell behind when Isaac Lee gave the ball away. It came out of nowhere after Salop had made a bright start and it was a mistake Town will be disappointed with.

The cross came in from the right, and Jordan Gibson rose above Luca Hoole at the back post to nod past a helpless Will Brook.

Shrewsbury didn't let it faze them, and hit back just before half-time through George Lloyd, who scored his first League Two goal of the season and his first in a league game since February.

He can never be accused of not working hard and the vast majority of the time that goes unnoticed and, more importantly, unrewarded.​

On this occasion, he did get his just rewards.

He closed down defender Luke Offord’s header back to his goalkeeper and when it came to a 50/50 with the keeper Tom Booth, Lloyd wanted it more.

The header back was well short, and Lloyd bundled through the keeper, who was left helpless on the turf.

Will Boyle could have scored almost immediately after the restart, but his close-range header went straight to Booth, who was well placed to deny him.

The captain had an excellent game and was a constant threat and nuisance in the Crewe box. On another day he could have had two or three.

Isaac Fletcher, playing out of position up front, had a great chance shortly before he was substituted.

A bouncing ball found him at the back post, and his header hit the inside of the post and somehow stayed out.

Town were fortunate at the other end too.

Right at the death, the ball was bundled over the line by Owen Lunt, only for the assistant's flag to go up.

Even Cowan admitted after the match that, having watched the footage back, the forward didn't look offside and the Shrews boss called on the officials to do better.

Kian McMahon-Brown continued to show real promise in a Town shirt. He was lively all afternoon in midfield, comfortable on the ball and gliding across the turf. He looks set for a successful season.

Progress seems to be under way off the pitch, with the takeover by an American consortium moving forward.

On the pitch, Town appear to be getting it together too, and they'll want to build on this when they head into their next match.

The rest of the football world stops during the international break, but not Town - they play Tranmere on Tuesday before they are back in league action next weekend with a clash against Colchester.