Shrewsbury Town’s positive start built from the back

And two players key to those solid foundations have been new signing Chey Dunkley at the back and captain Luke Leahy in central midfield.

Town – who currently occupy 13th position in the League One table – are already three points better off than they were at this stage last season.

And a lot of their early season success is down to their tight defensive work.

Steve Cotterill’s side have let in six goals so far this campaign – only Exeter City and league leaders Ipswich Town have conceded fewer.

And at the heart of that record is Dunkley – in the middle of a back three for every league game so far this season, except Saturday at Forest Green Rovers when Cotterill moved to a back four.

The defender has made a massive impression since signing on a two-year deal in the summer, with his aerial prowess in the middle of the defence being a big factor.

The 30-year-old has won more headers than any other Town player, winning 35 aerial duels.

Dunkley has led that statistic in five of the seven League games Town have played this season, including a match-high of nine in the 1-0 defeat against Accrington Stanley. He also poses a threat from set plays in the opposition box – though he is yet to get off the mark in the league, he did score the winning goal against Carlisle United in the Carabao Cup first round.

Dunkley, of course, does not do it all along. He has been paired with Tom Flanagan and Matthew Pennington in every league game this season, with Pennington moving out of the back three for the first time to take up a position at right-back in a back four on Saturday.

And Town boss Cotterill hailed Dunkley’s performance at The New Lawn.

“I thought the back four were excellent,” he said. “And Chey Dunkley out of all of them was outstanding.”

Another contributing factor to the team’s early-season run is newly-appointed skipper Leahy. He signed for Town as a wing-back, but Cotterill deployed him in midfield – a very successful move from the boss.

The captain sets the tone with his energy and pressing, and on the one occasion he was not quite at his best the team’s performance also dipped – when they were beaten 3-0 by Ipswich.

The former Walsall and Bristol Rovers man has been vital for winning the ball back and getting Town on the front foot. He has made more tackles than any other Town player after seven games with 19.

Leahy made a season-high seven tackles in the goalless draw with Derby County, and also put in four during the 2-1 victory at Wycombe Wanderers.

The only game he has failed to make a tackle in so far this season was that 3-0 defeat against the Tractor Boys.

Leahy has also continued to show he has quality, with good delivery from set pieces, scoring a brilliant goal in the Carabao Cup against Carlisle from a free-kick.