Shrewsbury vs Wigan - Match preview

Leaders Wigan Athletic head to Montgomery Waters Meadow tomorrow knowing that only a victory will guarantee them the League One crown.

Defeat could see Rotherham leapfrog the Latics into top spot and possibly even third-placed MK Dons knock them out of the automatic promotion positions, depending on goal difference.

A draw opens up other permutations, but it could still leave the winners’ medal hopes hanging by a thread.

And, ultimately from a Shrewsbury point of view, nobody wants to see opponents celebrating and partying on your own patch.

Town would rightly honour and, surely, applaud the efforts of their visitors if Leam Richardson’s side are parading the trophy in front of a lively away end come mid-afternoon after tomorrow’s early kick-off.

But it would sting, deep down. Or maybe not too deep down.

Steve Cotterill’s side would, clearly, much rather have an exciting prospect riding on their own final day of the season.

But Shrews, in 17th – where they finished last term – can only claim finishes of between 16th and 18th.

First of all, tomorrow offers the opportunity for Shrews to end the season on a high, in front of a boosted home gate, and head into the summer in a positive frame of mind after a tough run of winless fixtures.

A part of setting a positive tone for next season is finishing the previous campaign in style. Cotterill and Shrews will first be focused on that.

The prospect of hammering a final nail into the coffin of Wigan’s title, and potentially even promotion aspirations, would go down sweetly in the stands and dugout at the Meadow.

Wigan, who only took advantage of games in hand and rivals Rotherham’s woeful form to climb top of the pile earlier this month, are having an alarming wobble of their own.

The visiting Latics haven’t won in five games – taking just three points from a possible 15. They passed up the opportunity to seal promotion, somehow, from 2-0 up in the second half at Portsmouth on Tuesday.

Richardson’s side have passed up the opportunity to seal guaranteed automatic promotion in their last three games – where a single goal in either outing would have been enough.

Town have some pedigree in putting a spanner in the works of Championship hopefuls this term.

Rotherham’s collapse from a strong lead has been quite spectacular and, arguably, began at half-time at the Meadow on March 1.

Salop played the Millers off the park in the second half in a 0-0 draw that night and Paul Warne’s men have managed just three wins in 10 league outings since. They went into April still, just about, leading the way but now any title hopes only hang by the fact Wigan have stuttered towards the finish line.

Shrews and their fans also remember four seasons ago when it comes to Wigan. The Latics beat Blackburn to the title, with Town in third, in the 2017/18 season when Shrews fell in the play-off final. Marko Marosi was in goal for Doncaster when Wigan won the league on the final day that term.

Cotterill’s men were cruelly denied at the DW Stadium in December by a stoppage time goal in which Rekeil Pyke and Sam Cosgrove did not cover themselves in glory. That will still sting.

Town want to win for themselves. But their fans would love nothing more than to spoil a party and enjoy themselves at the visitors’ expense.