Comment: Give Shrewsbury Town the credit they deserve

Does he have a point? Is it unfashionable to dish out praise to the little guy punching well above its weight and upsetting the odds? The pragmatic and straight-talking ‘Doigy’ may just have unearthed a talking point.

It does feel that Shrewsbury’s fairytale campaign – the kind of success not seen in Shropshire football for nigh on four decades – has gone under the radar somewhat.

As reporter for the club’s local newspaper I spend a lot of time penning words on the goings on at Montgomery Waters Meadow, and must say I am a little surprised at the lack of column inches owed to the best story in the top four divisions of English football this season.

Is that being biased? Some may say so. Being so embroiled in the club’s season means I am unable to offer equal acknowledgement of other clubs’ ventures.

But there is, having scanned the Premier League down to League Two, little to remotely rival the kind of fabled success Paul Hurst and his side are enjoying.

Not for a minute am I saying Shrewsbury should be appearing on the back pages of the national tabloids and broadsheets every day, but their rise under Hurst is – if nothing else – a great story. The manager himself possesses a great tale. The David v Goliath battle at the top of League One is like Leicester doing battle with Chelsea and Manchester City all over again, albeit on a much lower scale.

Town attracted interest during the build-up to their glamour FA Cup tie with West Ham United. The Joe Hart factor helped make that more than merely a Shrewsbury appraisal.

That aside there has been little praise of the side that were 11/8 with bookmakers to drop to League Two this season.

Doig’s comments are totally warranted. It is worth stressing the want for more praise is in no way to massage the management’s ego or act as a big pat on the back.

The assistant is a big champion of his players and simply – and rightly – believes they deserve more national coverage and plaudits. It is hard to disagree.

In fact, certainly for the first few months of the season, Hurst was more than happy with his side going under the radar. ‘Little old Shrewsbury will tail off’ was the expectancy for weeks and months.

Clearly going under the radar is a thing of the past with Shrews sitting in the automatic promotion spots in March with a play-off position realistically all-but secured.

Wigan’s FA Cup run deserves credit. Plymouth’s resurrection from the dead to hit the top six too. Neither match the longevity or sheer defiance of Town.

There is Pep Guardiola’s magical top flight work. But who needs to read every week about how he is the best manager around, with the best players? Hardly surprising, given they have the most money.

Sean Dyche and Burnley deserve a mention, but even they have tailed off noticeably.

Wolves’ success is no shock. While Accrington and Mansfield deserve recognition in League Two.

Another factor Doig alluded to was player of the month gongs. Town have no leading striker bagging the goals. No superstar headline name signing winning every man of the matches.

But Shaun Whalley got more assists than Kevin De Bruyne in February – not even enough for a player of the month top four shout.

Shrewsbury are greater than the sum of their parts. Others don’t want to celebrate it. But we can.