Bernard McNally: Shrewsbury Town nicely placed in the chasing pack
I’ll liken Shrewsbury’s current form to a long distance race and we are currently well placed, embedded in the chasing pack, doing our job quietly and ready to make a move.
We are progressing, bit by bit. Sometimes it’s nice to go forward like that. We’re just encroaching on that top half and top six, slowly but very steadily.
It seems to have that feel about it, just moving up a notch, getting better and better every week.
I’m sure runners would say sometimes it’s helpful to be just behind the front pack, embedded in, nicely getting themselves sorted.
That seems to be what is happening at the Meadow and hopefully it continues. I don’t see any reason why we can’t have a really good season.
What a fantastic result it was against Peterborough. We’ve used this tweaked formation for three games now and had two great wins, it feels like there’s some continuity and momentum.
Players can be funny creatures. If they think a system suits them well it helps them mentality.
Good teams win 1-0 and on Tuesday night we got a result to go along with a good performance.
There will always be pessimism. You can have 25 shots and lose a game. We know we need to produce more and 100 per cent Sam Ricketts and the players will know.
But they’re establishing a base at the moment. Just hold fire, things are going alright, a 1-0 win is better than losing.
With our confidence growing, if we can start scoring more goals we can really move up the league.
Although, having said that, we only need to score one more than the opposition!
Teams in form seem to be able to grind victories out but Town’s performances are also improving with more creativity.
We know we’re sturdy and getting better defensively, but that front three interests me.
It’s not a wide three, more of a triangular shape, and it’s very flexible to interchange. It’s been a good change and I’m looking forward to seeing it moving forward.
To back the 1-0 win over Sunderland up with similar against Peterborough, who seem to smash goals past everybody, just gives us all that bit more confidence that what we’re doing is working.
You couldn’t write the script for Joe Murphy saving the penalty on his league debut.
His experience shone through, it’s a gamble which side you go but he got the mind games spot on.
A word for Scott Golbourne who has stepped in and stepped up to the plate. Donald Love has found a new lease of life, what a player he looks.
We turn our heads to the FA Cup now and we can take stock and reflect on a positive period.
