Paul Hurst demands a meaner defence from his Shrewsbury Town
Shrewsbury Town boss Paul Hurst is demanding his players tighten up defensively as they look to climb the League One table.
A crucial 5-3 win at Crawley Town at the weekend saw Town leapfrog their relegation zone rivals and move up to 21st place in the division. However, head coach Hurst is acutely aware that his side are conceding too many goals, and their goals-against column is the second worst in the division so far this season.
Shrews have conceded 20 times in their 11 league games, with mid-table Peterborough United the only team with a worse defensive record, having shipped 21.
And speaking after Town’s win at Crawley on Saturday, Hurst said: “I heard their manager talking about them pre-game and his philosophy. He was saying if they need to score six, then they need to score six.
“That is not how I want to play football. I do not think personally it is right. At the top level, they always talk about defences being relevant to win titles. The other things are nice, and maybe you will think you have always got a chance in a game but I was disappointed with the goals and the way we defended in the first half of that game.
“I felt like we ran alongside people a lot. We do not try to influence them. They might have the ball and think they are in control but you still have to get tight to people.
“You have to try to influence them to make them make the wrong decisions. Force them one way. I thought we were just a little bit too easy at times.
“The second goal is another example of that where they ran up the line there was a bit of physical contact and we did not do enough. “
