Cambridge 4- 1 Shrewsbury - Report
Shrewsbury Town's miserable season went from bad to worse as they were thrashed by relegation rivals Cambridge United.
Given the context of the season, it was a huge game for Salop as they tried to get out of the precarious league position they find themselves in.
But their inability to defend and respond to any adversity cost them dearly again, as they were thumped 4-1 by the Us in awful conditions caused by Storm Darragh.
Gareth Ainsworth had made five changes to the side that had lost 2-1 against Blackpool in midweek.
Tommi O'Reilly, Jordan Shipley, Funso Ojo, Morgan Feeney and George Nurse got their first opportunity to impress the boss in his third game in charge of the Shrews.
But Salop started in the worst possible fashion as they trailed inside 40 seconds of the match.
Shayne Lavery was the man to give the Us the lead after Toby Savin had spilled a dangerous cross from the Town left.
Salop responded to that relatively well as Carl Winchester, Nurse and Shipley all saw efforts go close to finding the net.
O'Reilly could have scored his first goal in a Town shirt when he took down Shipley's cross in the box, but Reyes made himself big and blocked it.
After more good skill from O'Reilly, full-back Luca Hoole should have scored when Bloxham pulled it back.
He missed from inside the six-yard box and Cambridge went down the other end and doubled their lead - Lavery firing through Savin after a swift counterattack.
The weather had caused havoc in the UK, and it heavily impacted this clash at Abbey Stadium.
Ainsworth and his side not only had to get back into the match after the break, but they also had to do so while kicking into a 60 mph wind.
Hopes of a comeback were dashed within minutes of the resumption when Dan Nlundulu capitalised on confusion at the back for Shrews as they failed to deal with a cross.
Three became four not long after when Shrews conceded another poor goal as Elias Kachunga headed in at the far post.
Town did get one goal back when John Marquis converted from the penalty spot after second-half substitute George Lloyd was fouled by Reyes.
Ryan Loft could have made it five late when he shot wide but it was another thoroughly miserable afternoon for Town and the 433 loyal supporters who made the journey from Shropshire. Spare a thought for them.
TEAMS:
Shrews: Savin, Nurse, M Feeney, Hoole, Ojo, Gilliead (Castledine 65), Winchester (Rossiter 64), Shipley, O'Reilly (Sagoe Jr 76), Bloxham (Lloyd 65), Marquis.
Subs not used: Young, Perry, Feeney.
Cambridge: Reyes, Bennett, Morrison, Watts, Brophy (Andrew 65), Nlundulu (Loft 65), Kachunga (Stokes 76), Smith, Rossi, Lavery (Njoku 76), Cousins.
Subs not used: Stevens, O'Riordan, Longelo.
