Shrewsbury 1 Reading 3 - Report
Michael Appleton’s wait for his first win as Shrewsbury Town boss goes on after his side were beaten 3-1 by Reading.
Salop were handed their 26th League One defeat of the season by Noel Hunt’s promotion-chasing Royals at the Croud Meadow.
The result means Shrewsbury’s relegation from the third tier of English football could be confirmed at Lincoln on Saturday.
Report
Appleton made three changes to the side that lost at home to Cambridge on Saturday.
Luca Hoole, Taylor Perry and George Nurse were all recalled to the starting XI, while David Wheeler, Jordan Shipley and Mal Benning dropped out of the team.
Town started the game really well on a beautiful evening in Shropshire with Hoole and Alex Gilliead linking up well and catching the eye.
John Marquis should have done better when he was presented with a chance inside the Reading penalty area - but he curled his shot wide of the post.
Funso Ojo played in George Lloyd, but he dragged his shot wide when he should have hit the target.
There was a scramble in the box, but somehow the Royals managed to hook the ball away.
Shrews were made to pay for not being ruthless in the final third as Reading took the lead against the run of play. It was another disappointing moment from goalkeeper Jamal Blackman.
Lewis Wing’s shot from distance looked harmless, it was not hit particularly hard, but it was on target, and it got through the Town shot stopper’s grasp.
He had to be alert moments later to stop the visitors from doubling their advantage.
On the stroke of half-time, it looked like Salop had levelled the scores when Taylor Perry poked the ball goalward, but Joel Pereira got enough on it to push it over the bar.
Second half
After all their hard work in the first half, they equalised within three minutes of the second period when Perry was played in by Josh Feeney. He took the ball around Pereira and slotted it into an empty net.
Town could have led when Marquis fired the ball into the side netting, but they were only level for five minutes as Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan fired Reading in front again.
It was a great goal from his perspective. He beat Morgan Feeney, got past another couple of Salop players and then proceeded to smash it into the top corner.
Aaron Pierre saw a deflected shot tipped over the bar by Pereira as Appleton’s men went in search of an equaliser. The head coach went to his bench midway through the half as Benning, Wheeler and Dominic Gape provided fresh legs.
Instead, Reading extended their lead when Wolves loanee Chem Campbell fired home at the back post after Shrewsbury had lost the ball in the visitors' half.
Campbell’s effort looked to have been going wide until it hit Blackman, and it crept in, and that ended the game as a contest.
Teams
Shrewsbury: Blackman, Hoole (Wheeler 67), M Feeney, J Feeney, Pierre, Nurse (Benning 67), Gilliead, Ojo (Gape 67), Perry (Shipley 74), Lloyd (Stewart 87), Marquis.
Subs: Young, Nsiala.
Reading: Pereira, Knibbs (Carroll 86), Savage (Rushesha 89), Ehibhatiomhan (Bodin 77), Yiadom, Campbell, Bindon, Mbengue, Camara (Wareham 45), Wing, Garcia (Abrefa 45).
Subs: Button, Bodin, Rushesha, Stickland.
Attendance: 4,956 (596 away).
