Shrewsbury boss Steve Cotterill hails substitutes after dramatic late Forest Green win

Jordon Garrick had earlier given the visitors the lead in their first game under new boss Duncan Ferguson, with a brilliant strike from distance.

But substitutes Ryan Bowman and Rekeil Pyke both got their first goals since September, in stoppage time, as Shrewsbury snatched all three points right at the death for the second time in a week.

Cotterill made all five changes in the second half, and he was delighted with the way they impacted the game.

He said: "I thought the boys that came on today, the glut of subs, had a fantastic impact on the game.

"And the most important thing for me today is that when those goals went in, it was the people who had been taken off who were the first ones down there celebrating.

"That tells you something about the group, they are a special group, and I really enjoyed that moment, while all the pandemonium was going on.

"I said to Rekeil do not look for the corners just smash it.

"I think when that bobbled up, he had that 'just smash it' in his head, and thankfully it went in for him.

"He is a fantastic boy, Ricky, I am really pleased that he got that goal.

"And I am also pleased for Ryan Bowman to get that finish, it was a great finish at the end, and without Killian making the tackle and the pass to get there, so he had an impact when he came, as did Elliott (Bennett).

"It worked thankfully."

Town came into the game off the back of another thrilling late win earlier this week, Tom Bayliss the man on that occasion to smash home in the 89th minute to give Salop the points.

The game against Forest Green had been a frustrating affair for large parts with the visitors sitting deep and asking Shrews to break them down, which was something they found hard.

The boss said he thought his side took a little too long on the ball in the first half.

He said: "At the end as exciting as it was for everyone else, we ended up putting ourselves in a situation in the game that I can understand.

"But that we have got to learn from, really our dwell time on the ball in the first half was too long.

"Our speed of pass and our speed of thought was not quick enough, but I genuinely think that was just down to an incredibly heavy pitch the other night at MK Dons.

"But you never know how it is going to be and you cannot change all eleven players.

"And when they are in a bit of a rhythm, you stick with it, we just made the one change today.

"You know, it was a difficult game for the boys today, but as I have said before their character and their spirit.

"It took a little while to get to it (the substitutions) because you are thinking am I going to disrupt the game.

"In the game, we were still in the ascendency but we probably quite cutting and quite sharp enough.

"Full credit to their guys."have put in shift today for Duncan Ferguson, and Tony Grant so it was always going to be a difficult game for us anyway."