Loanee Elliot Thorpe closing in on Shrewsbury Town return
Elliot Thorpe is edging closer to being back in contention for Shrewsbury Town as he continues his recovery from a back injury.
The Luton loanee has yet to make an appearance for Salop since he arrived in the summer after suffering a stress fracture in his back.
He is not far away from resuming certain parts of competitive training, while Jordan Shipley – who has been out with a knee injury – is also not far behind him.
Matt Taylor said: “We are due with Elliot for him to rejoin some part of the competitive training within the next four or five days.
“Jordan will be slightly longer, however, he is doing exceptionally well with his rehab at the moment.
“To see them both on the grass is good, they had a Tuesday and a Thursday they will not want to repeat.
“It has been difficult for them physically. Elliot’s injury is more based on his symptoms, whereas Jordan’s is slightly more protocol-based, where you have to tick certain boxes before you can move on to certain elements of his rehabilitation.
“I know having been through that process myself as a player, to get your boots back on and be out of the gym and be warming up with the players is a wonderful feeling for those individuals but more importantly, gives the group a massive lift.”
For the second season running, Town have been on the back foot when it comes to injuries.
These players have been out for a while and when you combine that with George Nurse, who has injured his anterior cruciate ligament for the second consecutive year, and Morgan Feeney, who is out with a hamstring problem, Shrews have been up against it.
They were without seven first-team players last weekend at Cambridge but players nearing a return will make life easier for Taylor.
He continued: “The lads that are injured are getting closer to being fitter and closer to being in contention, which is fantastic news from my perspective.
“It is always difficult when you are a coach or a manager because your focus will always tend to be on the players who you are working with on a daily basis.
“What we do well here is we make sure we stay in constant communication in and around the group.”
