Lewis Poole reflects on the 2017/18 Sky Bet League One season
The back end of the season was fast approaching and February had arrived. After a good January, Town were looking to keep the run going in the first game and keep pilling points on the board.
Bristol Rovers were the first opposition as Town looked to keep the points tallying up. A trip to the Memorial Stadium wielded three points for Hurst’s men as the team ran out 2-1 winners. Omar Beckles and Alex Rodman once again proved that goals could come from anywhere on the pitch. The Town fans would have gone home happy as the three points put the Shropshire side two points ahead of Blackburn.
Town were offered an opportunity soon after to bounce back straight away. An away trip to face Fleetwood Town was next on the agenda and Town would have been motivated to get that three points. Shaun Whalley got the opening goal in the 45th minute, only to be cancelled out by Paddy Madden in the second half. Despite the equaliser, Town’s character shone through and Nathan Thomas got the winner in the latter stages of the game. The result fired Town into first place.
Confidence would have been high in the Shrewsbury dressing room as they prepaid for the test of Paul Hurst’s former club Rotherham United. Unfortunately for Town the inform skipper of The Millers notched a goal past Dean Henderson. The goal would be final, as Rotherham would be taking the points back to The New York Stadium. Luckily for Town the result didn’t effect the league position.
Town’s form was starting to show some cracks as the results, for the first time in the season, started to become inconsistent. This was the case with Town’s next game against Gillingham. The score line ended 1-1 and the Town fans would have seen this as two points dropped. Fan favourite Abu Ogogo was the goal scorer for Town on the day but the goal wasn’t enough to stop Town slipping back into second place.
A trip to The Valley was next on the calendar for Paul Hurst and not many believed Town would go there and get a result on the back of their recent form. Surprisingly Town really showed up that day and put two goals past Charlton Athletic to put all three points on the board for Town. Omar Beckles and Alex Rodman were the goal scorers and secured another week in second place.
February was a mixed bag for the squad as they fell short in some games but proved their quality in others. Despite the mix of results, Town remained in a healthy second place. A position any Town fan would have taken at the start of the season.