Shrewsbury Town assistant Aaron Wilbraham has always had family to count on

There can't be many whose lives have gone from 'zero to 100' in the space of a few months like Shrewsbury assistant and stand-in boss Aaron Wilbraham.

This time last year, the then 40-year-old striker's 23-year playing career had just, inadvertently, came to an end, owing to the pandemic.

Wilbraham tried to stay fit through lockdown, having been let go by Rochdale, and was helped by Cotterill, his former double-winning Bristol City manager. He wondered where and what his next role would be.

Low and behold, at the end of November, Cotterill replaced Sam Ricketts at Shrewsbury. A week or so later he called on former Robins, Norwich, Crystal Palace and Bolton favourite Wilbraham, who had never worked as a coach, as his lieutenant.

Wilbraham even had to endure some time away from the squad soon after, missing Doncaster and Wigan games either side of Christmas after his daughter had come into contact with a positive Covid-19 case. Cotterill joked at the time that his No.2 was at home, stacked up with 'homework'.

But nobody could quite had predicted since that, within weeks, it would be the student taking over from the master. Cotterill became seriously ill in early January and it was agreed Town could turn to Wilbraham with David Longwell's capable assistance.

Wilbraham has spent the last four-and-a-half months leading from the front. Barely nine months after playing his last match for Rochdale, and being filled with uncertainty in the summer, he has been, effectively, managing in League One.

It changed things drastically for the former striker, who lives in the Cheshire town of Wilmslow with wife and partner of 20 years Debra and 15-year-old daughter Ashlee.

"As a footballer you can finish training, do your extra bits and go home and switch off. But in this position you just can't," Wilbraham admitted.

"I remember my wife and daughter saying to me in the first month 'it's like you're the president!'

"Because you're never off the phone, you can't switch it off, a day off isn't a day off, you spent it on the phone.

"I'll speak to the manager for a couple of hours, I then have to fill in the fitness coaches and physios with information, speak to David Longwell to organise training with numbers – if we need young lads from the academy.

"Then you're sorting out away travel stuff for coaches and hotels, all questions being asked, then emails about who's suspended or who's close to a suspension, you start dealing with those, telling lads they better not get another yellow card.

"All the things you don't realise goes on as a player, even the setting up for training, speaking to lads who aren't playing. It's just non-stop.

"You have to manage your time quite well, I remember the manager telling me early on. You'll be glad if you can get a couple of things done that needed doing on a day off.

"A lot is based on the next game and training sessions, it's been a big difference but something I've coped with and got used to."

Former Stockport County striker Wilbraham has been supported every step of the way by Cotterill. The No.2 even recalled the time, when the manager was re-admitted to hospital, that Cotterill's wife text him saying 'Steve will be in touch about team news later'.

Wilbraham also praised the support and influence of his wife Debra, who has become a Shrewsbury obsessive and never misses a game, while also ploughing her own unique match analysis through on text to her husband's phone.

"She's good that way anyway to be fair, she's always been really supportive, she's watched every game," he added.

"I keep winding her up, she's watching on iFollow and she's like proper keen. Sometimes I'll look at my phone at half-time to see if the gaffer's rang or messaged and it'll be my missus messaging loads of stuff about the game!

"I think she's more interested now than when I was a player, I keep winding her up about that.

"She knows how much (I put in). As a player you can be quite selfish about your own performance. If you've performed OK you are happy. In this position the results matter ever more, she's more obsessed because she knows how much it means. She's enjoyed it."

The natural question to ask next was whether Mrs Wilbraham has come up with any tactical nuggets of advice that Cotterill may have missed.

"She wouldn't dare pipe up with anything like that because she hasn't got a clue really!" Wilbraham smiled.

"Her opinions on the game are quite diplomatic and fair, she's right in what she says a lot of the time. She's probably learnt off me, I've been with her a long time.

"She'll go and walk the dog and make sure she's back for the 3pm kick-off, make sure she's all set with a cup of tea and gets it on the TV and stuff. She enjoys the matchdays."

The Meadow assistant smiled as he admitted that regular phone calls with Cotterill, in which the boss forces him to have whatever football match is being played on in the background, does as least sidetrack him from the television shows on in the Wilbraham living room.

"I do sit in another room while on the phone to the gaffer and watch the football (on the TV) at the same time," he said.

"The gaffer's usually talking to me about the game that's on, making me pause it and take it back to certain bits, and telling me 'you see what Man City did there, that's what we can do!'

"He's so obsessed with football, he's always got it on in the background. It gives me an excuse to watch a bit of football instead of watching the programmes that she makes me watch!"