Sam Ricketts: I can't fault my Shrewsbury players
Sam Ricketts had sympathy for his Shrewsbury Town squad after they failed to get going physically on their big FA Cup night at Anfield.
Shrewsbury were particularly lacklustre against Liverpool's youngest ever side in their FA Cup fourth round replay and, despite improving after the break, exited after an agonizing late Ro-Shaun Williams own goal.
Ricketts pointed to his side's jam-packed schedule after what was their 39th game of the campaign.
Town had a short spell after half-time where they asked real questions of their youthful hosts at a packed-out Anfield and appeared to have broken the deadlock as Shaun Whalley nodded into an empty net - only for the goal to be chalked off for offside to the despair of the 8,000 travelling fans.
Ricketts said: "I can't fault the players at all, they've worked so hard this year and in the first game.
"You could see the difference from the build-up to the first game, it was the first time we'd had a free midweek in a long time - that's game 39 for us now and it's just caught up with us.
"The (first) game on the Sunday took a lot out of us physically and mentally. We had to go down to Gillingham to get home at 3 or 4 in the morning, then Rochdale then back here.
"We just couldn't get up to the physicality levels of what we need to do to play. We come up against a good side who move it really well and really quickly but we couldn't get near them to impose ourselves on them.
"I just felt disappointed for the players. They worked so hard to get here and then could not do themselves justice when finally getting here.
"We just couldn't get up to speed to where you need to be to play football.
"We run a small squad of 19 or 20. That's game 39, maybe we should have a winter break as well?"
Town failed to trouble the young Reds backline in the first period but woke up after the break as Whalley nodded in after Dave Edwards was denied before substitute Daniel Udoh went close.
But Williams inadvertently headed past Max O'Leary at the Kop end with just 15 minutes remaining and Salop couldn't recover.
Ricketts added: "VAR disallowing the goal changed the course, not saying we were great, but ultimately the game's been decided by an own goal.
"No blame attached to Ro-Shaun, he's a defender, he's not the first and he won't be the last. Max (O'Leary) only had one save to make with his feet."
