Shrewsbury Town v West Ham: Joe Hart mobbed as fans draw comfort from cup thriller - PICTURES
Joe Hart remained a hero with the Shrewsbury Town fans, despite stopping his former club from upsetting West Ham United in the third round of the FA Cup.
Town were unfortunate not to dump their Premier League visitors out of the world’s oldest and most famous domestic cup competition today – thanks in a large part to the saves of Hart.
The England goalkeeper, who began his career in Shropshire, superbly denied Mat Sadler and Ben Godfrey as League One Town threatened to cause an upset against the below-par Hammers, managed by another former Shrewsbury player, David Moyes.
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But at the end of the game he was still mobbed by supporters seeking autographs and he was happy to oblige having been given a warm reception at the Montgomery Waters Meadow.
With a low Shropshire sun causing visibility problems, Hart had to call on some help from the West Ham crowd, with one fan providing him with a cap to shield his eyes.
And it clearly helped as he kept a clean sheet to set up a replay at the London Stadium next week.
Fans had created a buoyant atmosphere before and during the thrilling game.
WATCH: Shrews and Hammers fans excited pre-match:
Many mingled together outside the ground ahead of kick-off sporting scarves and shirts, and even a Shrewsbury suit, as they wore their colours with pride.
And Shrewsbury Town fans have never had it so good – so says a supporter with seven decades of following the club behind her.
A delighted Sheila Walsh, from Condover, said the Shrews thoroughly deserved the result, and could have won.
Mrs Walsh, who went to the cup match with her daughter Barbara Dean, said she had been following Town since she was a little girl, watching the matches with her mother.
Now 77, she is just as keen as ever on football. “Shrewsbury were brilliant, absolutely brilliant, and they deserved to win,” she said.
Another ‘seasoned’ season ticket holder was Margaret Parker who has watched the Shrews for 60 years.
“I think we defended really well. West Ham were very disappointing, their players went down far too easily. We had chances to win but overall it’s a good result.”
Ball boy James Payne, who was at the match with his father Andy, said: “I thought we were fantastic, you couldn’t tell that there are two leagues between the teams on the pitch.”
There was a cup fever feel in the air before the game as TV crews and pundits including Gary Lineker travelled to the county town.
Later, as the fans poured out of the Montgomery Waters Meadow, there was a tinge of disappointment that Shrewsbury had not been able to get a winning goal.
Richard Stocks, from Lyneal, said: “Shrewsbury playing really well, it was a brilliant game. Rodman played well but it was the whole team effort that made the town brilliant today.”
He said it was good to see West Ham’s goalie and former town hero Joe Hart getting a good reception from the home fans.
There was praise from a West Ham-supporting family from Mid Wales. Duncan Foulkes and son Callum, from Newtown, are long-time Hammers fans but said Shrewsbury did well to hold the premiership team to a no-score draw. “Shrewsbury were the better team today,” Duncan said.
The Dovaston family from Ellesmere had hoped for a win for the town but were content with the draw. Jayne Dovaston said: “”Shrewsbury looked almost certain to go into the fourth round with the first-half chances we created. West Ham never really showed up with their nearly full strength side.”
