Gaffer looks ahead to visit of Rovers
Shrewsbury Town boss Paul Hurst believes his side could face their most difficult test yet when they take on Blackburn Rovers on Saturday.
Town are currently top of League One having won seven and drawn one of their opening eight fixtures.
“I think they are bringing 1,600 to the game, the same as Wigan did, so that should bring a good atmosphere into the ground”, Hurst told ShrewsWeb.
“I think when the fixtures came out we’d have looked at it and thought it might be a game where we get a real beating. Ultimately, that might happen at the weekend because they have got the players that if they do click on the same day they could probably do that to anyone in the league.
“We have to guard against them and make sure that we are up for the game, but at the same time, because of the results we’ve had we go into it with a little bit more belief and that can help you get more positive results.
“I’m certainly under no illusions and I would be amazed if they’re not there or there about come the end of the season. At the minute they’re just taking a bit of time to settle down, but they have been good away from home and that is where they are this weekend.”
Every single player in Blackburn’s last starting line-up had played in the Championship or above, so Paul knows about the quality they possess, but is hopeful of a similar performance to the one that saw off Wigan 1-0 earlier this month.
“I said last week about their bench and even if they change it it’s still a squad packed with quality”, said Hurst.
“When they do click they are going to be an extremely dangerous and powerful outfit in this league, but it’s a one-off game in reality. The past can’t influence what’s going to happen on the day, so we’ve got to give it a go, similar to Wigan, give absolutely everything, get the crowd involved and hopefully it will be another good weekend for us.”
There was good news on the injury front with James Bolton and Bryn Morris returning to training.
“It looks like we’ve got everyone available”, Paul confirmed.
“Bryn had a day on Tuesday where he was a spare man, but today he’s been fully involved. He won’t be in contention for Saturday, but it’s a big positive for us and he’s already looking extremely good, and everyone else is fit and healthy and raring to go.”