Lack of big names is hurting Town

Town proved for the second time in six months that they are unable to attract big name players following a frustrating transfer deadline day, writes Shrewsbury Town blogger James Pugh.

After Barnet's John O'Flynn turned down the chance to join us in January, it begs the questions – is Shrewsbury an unattractive place to play football?

The reason I ask this is that only last summer Dagenham's Paul Benson turned down the chance to join us and instead signed a new contract with his club.

Town have a lot going for them – they have got a big name manager, they have got one of the best fan bases in the division, they have got money and they have been challenging for promotion in the last few seasons.

Why then would players representing 'smaller' clubs reject the chance to join us? Perhaps it's because they don't think we have got the potential to get promoted or perhaps they think Shrewsbury is located 'in the sticks' and is not a fashionable place to live.

Whatever the reason, it has left us desperately short of man power and Simpson will have to work wonders in the loan window which begins this week.

The only positive to come out of the transfer deadline day was that it answered a question I have long been asking – have Town any money to spend on players?

The bid of £100,000 for O'Flynn showed we have got money and the chairman is prepared to back the manager. The only problem is that we can't spend it now until the summer and by then it could be too late and Town could be preparing for another season in League Two.

On Saturday, Town ended their poor run of results at Moss Rose with a hard-fought 1-0 win against Macclesfield. Despite not being a classic, the return of captain Coughlan inspired us to a much needed win and put our promotion challenge back on track.

Fans need to be prepared to experience a rollercoaster end to the season with no one knowing what Town team is going to turn up to games. At least we can expect an exciting end to the season, although I worry about how fans are going to keep their nerves in check.

Next up for Town is two home games, starting with Barnet on Tuesday and local rivals Hereford on Saturday. On paper they look like two very winnable games – both teams are in the wrong half of the division and have only picked up three league away wins between them all season.

However, our home form has been too inconsistent this season and we need to cut out the slip ups we have experienced against teams such as Accrington.