Birmingham City 4 Shrewsbury Town 1 - Report

The 4-1 loss at St Andrew’s is not the low point of the week after former boss Gareth Ainsworth walked out on Shrews to join Gillingham. 

But the League One leaders were far superior to Appleton’s side, who are in an extremely poor run of form, which has seen them lose seven of their last nine matches.  

Town conceded twice from set pieces in a clash that was hardly a contest for the vast majority of the game on another bruising afternoon.

REPORT

Appleton made three changes to the side that lost 2-0 against Burton Albion, a game that felt like an eternity ago.

John Marquis returned, as did George Nurse and Alex Gilliead - Jordan Shipley, David Wheeler, and Harrison Biggins made way. 

Shrewsbury started the game brightly, but after a promising opening 10 minutes, the hosts soon began to assert their dominance. 

Jamal Blackman was always going to have a busy day against the league leaders, and he was called into action for the first time when Jay Stansfield ran in on goal. But the striker’s effort went straight at the Town keeper. 

Kieran Dowell missed an absolute sitter not long after. Willum Willumsson’s cross went to the back post, and the Rangers loanee smashed it over the bar from six yards out. 

The deadlock was finally broken in the 26th minute when Ben Davies converted from a set piece. Playing against a side as good as Blues, of all the ways to concede, that was certainly not a good one from a Shrewsbury perspective. 

The defender had far too much space at the back post, and he was easily allowed to turn it beyond Blackman. 

The final 15 minutes of the half went by with fewer alarms, and with it being just 1-0 at the break, Appleton’s men had the chance to regroup. 

Luca Hoole was taken off at the break as David Wheeler was introduced to the action. Alex Cochrane was inches away from making it 2-0 to the home side. His effort from outside the box went narrowly wide of Blackman’s post. 

That second did come though, again from Salop’s awful defending of set plays - a free header for Ethan Laird. 

The third came 13 minutes from time when two substitutes combined. Emil Hansson got the better of Josh Feeney, and his cross was converted from close range by Alfie May. 

The former Cheltenham man got his second of the afternoon three minutes from time when he took the ball around Blackman before slotting home. 

There was enough time left in the game for Shrewsbury to snatch a late consolation as Vadaine Oliver netted his second goal for the club. He got on the end of Shipley’s cross, but it was another terrible afternoon for Town fans. 

Teams:

Birmingham: Allsop, Laird (Sampsted 62), Klarer, Leonard, Anderson (Hansson 62), Willumsson (Harris 72), Cochrane, Iwata, Davies, Stansfield (May 72), Dowell. 

Subs: Peacock-Farrell, Jutkiewicz, Hanley. 

Shrewsbury: Blackman, Hoole (Wheeler 45), J Feeney, Pierre, Nurse (M Feeney 81), Benning, Gape (Shipley 75), Gilliead, Perry (Oliver 75), Lloyd, Marquis. 

Subs: Young, Dinanga, Stewart.