Shrewsbury Town lose out to Accrington Stanley.
Town: Joe Murphy, Scott Golbourne (Sam Hart, 45), Dave Edwards, Ro-Shaun Williams, Omar Beckles, Callum Lang (Daniel Udoh, 58), Donald Love (Sean Goss, 76), Conor McAleny, Ethan Ebanks-Landell, Josh Laurent, Jason Cummings.
Subs: Max O’Leary, Aaron Pierre, Ryan Sears, Kayne Ramsay, Sean Goss, Daniel Udoh, Sam Hart
Accrington: Josef Bursik, Callum Johnson, Mark Hughes, Ross Sykes, Jordan Clarke, Joe Maguire, Bobby Grant (Lamine Shariff, 81), Seamus Conneely (Sam Finley, 72), Dion Charles, Benny Ashley-Seal (Offrande Zanzala, 66), Sadou Diallo.
Subs: Phil Edwards, Lamine Sherif, Sam Finley, Offrande Zanzala, Harry Perritt, Ajibola Alese, Toby Savin.
Referee: Ollie Yates
Assistants: Ian Dudley and Kevin Morris
Fourth official: Ravel Cheosiaua
Attendance: 4699 (103)
Shrewsbury Town were unable to secure any points against Accrington Stanley as John Coleman’s side ran out 2-0 winners at the Montgomery Waters Meadow.
A goal in each half from Bobby Grant and Jordan Clarke was the difference between the two sides as the away side took home the win.
First Half:
It was a start to forget for Omar Beckles against Accrington Stanley, as the defender was booked in the ninth minute for two fouls in quick succession.
Just three minutes later, Bobby Grant put the away side in the lead. The forward picked up the ball just outside the box and let off a thunderous effort that riffled into the top right corner of the Salop net.
Conor McAleny was also booked for Town with just under 30 minutes on the clock for a foul in the middle of the park.
McAleny was a bright spark for Town going forward and continually tried to force the play in the Stanley half. Despite good energy and movement on the ball, the forward couldn’t break down the away side’s defence.
Jason Cummings came close to bringing Salop back onto level terms in the 38th minute. Scott Golbourne fired in an inch-perfect cross to the striker but Cummings narrowly missed the target with his headed effort.
The half came to an end with the away side going into the break with a one-goal advantage.
Second Half:
Cummings carved out a chance to bring Salop back on level terms 10 minutes into the second period. The forward’s neat dribbling allowed him a yard of space just inside the Stanley box but his shot was well blocked by Mark Hughes.
Town continued to push forward in search of the equalise goal but found space in the Stanley box limited. Salop were restricted to long-range shots that often earned corners.
Ethan Ebanks-Landell was shown a yellow card in the 70th minute for a foul on Accrington’s number nine.
The away side managed to double the lead with 20 minutes to go in the tie. Despite Joe Murphy making a good save, the ball fell to Accrington’s number seven and he smashed home to earn a second Stanley goal.
Town began to create more chances as the game ticked on. A great cross from Sam Hart found Udoh in the box but Town’s number 23 was unable to guide his effort on target and narrowly headed over the bar.
The game came to an end with Town losing out by two goals.