Cameron Burgess was sent off for a second bookable offence as the Blues drew 1-1 at Shrewsbury. Town had looked comfortable, James Norwood having given them a sixth-minute lead, until being reduced to 10 men after Burgess had lunged at home keeper Marko Marosi on 75 and sub Shaun Whalley lashed an equaliser from 25 yards to claim a share of the points for the Shrews.

James Norwood’s sixth-minute goal has given the Blues a 1-0 half-time lead over Shrewsbury at Montgomery Waters Meadow.

Matt Penney, Sone Aluko, Tyreeq Bakinson returned to the Town side with left wing-back Penney making his first start since the Bolton game in January having come on as a sub in the 1-0 defeat to Cambridge last week. Dominic Thompson dropped to the bench.

Bakinson came into the middle of midfield for Tom Carroll, who was on the bench alongside Bersant Celina with Aluko replacing the Kosovan international and taking up the right-sided number 10 role.

Shrewsbury were without centre-half Ethan Ebanks-Landell, who has a knee problem, with Josh Daniels replacing him. Former Blues loanee Matt Pennington started.

The game got under way in blustery and cold conditions with the Blues, wearing their black and white away kit, in control from the off.

Town should have gone in front in the fourth minute when Aluko fed Janoi Donacien to his right and the centre-half chipped over a cross which Conor Chaplin headed goalwards but too close to Marosi, who blocked superbly when it looked a certain goal.

But the 1,560 Blues supporters behind the goal only had to wait two more minutes for a goal.

Donacien exchanged passes with Burns on the right and sent over another cross from the right, and James Norwood flicked a near-post header across Marosi and into the net. It was the striker’s sixth goal of the season and his first since the 4-0 win at Gillingham in January.

On eight, Ryan Bowman, who was subbed in the game at Portman Road with a heart problem, chased a long ball down the middle with Christian Walton advancing off his line. The striker tried to touch it past the keeper, who palmed it away. The home crowd claimed he did so while outside the area but Walton was very clearly inside and referee Darren Handley showed no interest.

The game was held up for seven minutes on 12 when the linesman on the far side suffered an injury and there was an appeal over the PA for qualified officials to make themselves known. The stricken linesman made his way off to chants of ‘you’re not fit to run the line’ from the Shrews supporters.

After a protracted warm-up as the additional member of the refereeing team was secured, fourth official Lisa Rashid took over along the line.

Marosi again saved from Chaplin on 21, the forward hitting a shot from just outside the box which deflected through to the keeper.

Morsy was booked for a late tackle on home captain Elliott Bennett on 25 leading to some pushing and shoving involving a number of players and calls for a red card from the home support. Referee Handley eventually restored order and showed only a yellow card.

The Town skipper was joined in the book by Luke Leahy four minutes later for pulling back Aluko as the Blues passed their way towards the Shrews box. Chaplin’s free-kick deflected off the wall for a corner from which the ball fell to Penney deep on the left of the box but the former Sheffield Wednesday man’s shot flew deep into the stand.

On 39 Aluko played a one-two with Burns inside the box but found himself at a tight angle on the right and Marosi was able to save.

Almost immediately, Shrewsbury created their first chance of the match, Daniel Udoh tricking his way past Burns before sending over a cross to the far post from where Daniels headed over, although Penney really ought to have reached the ball before the Shrews man.

Pennington was booked in the 44th minute for clattering into the back of Chaplin’s ankles with the one-time Town loan man claims he’d got the ball falling on deaf ears.

Due to the stoppage for the injury to the linesman, the teams played 10 additional minutes.

Morsy headed Donacien’s ball from deep on the right straight to Marosi, then at the other end the home fans appealed for a penalty after the former Accrington man and Udoh clashed but referee Handley awarded Town a free-kick.

Penney almost reached a deflected Burns cross from the right and claimed he was fouled as he tried to get on the ball, then a minute later Chaplin saw a shot from the edge of the box diverted behind off a defender. Soon after, Morsy hit a low drive through to Marosi.

Just before the whistle, Burgess was shown his first yellow card for pulling back Bowman despite vehement protests of his innocence. Town defended the resultant free-kick to deservedly go in 1-0 up at half-time.

The Blues had been well in control throughout the half and ought to have been in front even before Norwood’s goal with Chaplin having had a gilt-edged chance.

Despite the hold-up for the injury to the official disrupting the rhythm of the game, Town were well in charge, although not at their slickest and without creating too many clear-cut chances to add to their lead.

The Shrews had come more into it later in the half but with Daniels’s header their only real opportunity.

Town continued to control the game following the restart, although with the odd sloppy pass creeping in and no chances at either end.

In the 62nd minute the already-booked Morsy was given a lengthy talking-to by the referee after a foul on Josh Vela, the official clearing making it plain that any more indiscretions would lead to a second yellow card.

Three minutes later, the Shrews swapped Daniels for Whalley, then on 66 Vela added his name to the lengthy list of bookings for a late tackle on Burns.

Marosi was forced into a sharp save by team-mate Leahy a minute later, the keeper reacting quickly after the defender had inadvertently shot Chaplin’s cross towards his own goal.

With 15 minutes left on the clock, the Blues were reduced to 10 men. Burgess brought the ball forward from the back for the first time all afternoon before feeding Chaplin, who lost possession on the edge of the box. The ball was played back to Marosi, who cleared, however Burgess chased it down and slid in on the keeper, who leapt over his tackle.

It was debatable whether there was any contact but referee Handley acted immediately to show Burgess a second yellow card as the Australian U23 international protested before making his way off.

It was a wholly needless challenge at a time when the Blues were comfortable, dominating play and looking to work the opening from which they could score their second of the game.

The card woke the previously dormant home crowd with their side having shown little threat since the break. On 77 Tyrese Fornah blazed over from the edge of the area.

A minute later, Town swapped Aluko for Thompson as they sought to shore up their backline, the on-loan Brentford man going into the back three. In the 83rd minute, Macauley Bonne took over from Norwood.

Until the red card Town had looked on their way to a work-a-day victory but on 84 the Shrews levelled. A long ball was played forward from deep, Bowman beat Thompson in the air to knock down and Whalley crashed a 25-yard strike past Walton.

Shrewsbury set about looking for a winner against the 10 men and in the 87th minute the game, which had always had some underlying niggle, threatened to boil over again after Burns had tripped George Nurse. The fouled player subsequently clashed with Donacien before plenty of other players joined in. Order was eventually restored and Burns, Donacien and Nurse were all booked.

The Shrews had the Blues pinned back in their own half as the game moved into four minutes of injury time but were unable to find a winner in the final moments.

Town had looked well on their way to a win until the red card, one as needless as you’ll see at any level.

The dismissal changed the pattern of a game which the Blues were well in charge of and it was inevitable that the Shrews would grab an equaliser, although Whalley’s strike was one to remember for home fans.

Ultimately, the result matters little to Town with the season already over but failing to win another game which they had dominated is a frustration, particularly in the wake of last week’s home loss to Cambridge.

Shrewsbury: Marosi, Leahy, Pennington, Fornah, Vela, Udoh (Bloxham 90), Bowman, Bennett (c), Daniels (Whalley 65), Nurse, Flanagan. Unused: Pierre, Burgoyne, Caton, Craig, Janneh.

Town: Walton, Donacien, Woolfenden, Burgess, Burns, Bakinson, Morsy (c), Aluko (Thompson 78), Penney, Chaplin, Norwood (Bonne 83). Unused: Hladky, El Mizouni, Carroll, Celina, Pigott. Referee: Darren Handley (Lancashire). Att: 7,682 (Town: 1,560).

Photo: Pagepix

atty added 18:19 - Apr 9 Plus Morsy!!,
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blueboy1981 added 18:22 - Apr 9 Elizabeth !! - a little unfair that criticism, after taking a very early lead - we once again never pushed on. Same old ITFC trait - Sideways and Backward passes thereon, and then concede. A 0-1 lead is never a comfort zone … !!
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ImAbeliever added 18:28 - Apr 9 Let's ensure party atmosphere at PR through to end of season and stay positive for the future; for the first time since (when?)
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ImAbeliever added 18:30 - Apr 9 2001
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DaGremloid added 18:38 - Apr 9 ArnieM - spot on. This squad is NOT as good as some of you think they are. Most of them were very average buys or loans. Still believe that given time KM will do the business, but he needs to do it with his own squad and that won't include a lot of the players that are there now.
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Kirbmeister added 18:38 - Apr 9 McKenna's record since he stated with the squad he inherited has been impressive. This was a dead rubber. A lot of these players won't be here best season. Don't read too much into todays result.
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blueboy1981 added 18:53 - Apr 9 Don't be too sure about massive player exit this Summer ! - there may be ‘some' - but many of you are expecting more than there will be, in my opinion. For various reasons … !!!
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ringwoodblue added 19:02 - Apr 9 I predicted 0-0 today so I wasn't far off. Rotherham will be desperate for a victory on Saturday now they are in 3rd and with Edmundson injured and Burgess suspended, maybe we will see the introduction of Baggott. I'm afraid I can only see one more win this season against Crewe. What a shame the season is ending this way but we are where we deserve to be.
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jalapenosteve added 19:19 - Apr 9 Jeez, another draw. Again, it feels like we lost. The PR at the club these days is magnificent these days but in reality we will finish no better than last year, which is an effing disgrace.
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Woodbridgian added 19:34 - Apr 9 As Kenneth Wolstenholme once famously said “They think it's all over ….it is now” Just such a whimper of an end to the season. Think K McK is a breath of fresh air but is this squad really any better than the one so heavy slated last season. I'm not convinced. You can pick out individual players who maybe have added value, but overall I'm afraid it's the same old, same old. The bigger question is where we go from here. Another complete rebuild is out of the question. But it's going to be a massive window for the club. We've seen great support from the investors but I really worry that will be challenged if we have another season like this.

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RobsonWark added 20:31 - Apr 9 A massive clear out of the squad is not the answer. We will be back to square 1 again. We need to bring in 3 or 4 quality players to improve the team and squad.
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dirtydingusmagee added 20:36 - Apr 9 Sadly,IMO that was a disappointing shambles, reminiscent of pre KM days,going to have to be a big change in things over summer .Anyone believing we are nailed on for promotion next season need to think again im afraid.
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FrankMarshall added 21:59 - Apr 9 Like others have said, feel that with time KM will do a very good job for the club. We have the right person at the helm. Our squad does have its issues. We are 3 or 4 players from being a top team in this division (and I mean 3 or 4 top players). In order to get those players, we are going to have to move a few people on. It's going to be super competitive in this league again next season. It's hard to tell who is going to be promoted yet, but 3 out of those 6 teams in the top 6 will be with us next season. Derby will (likely) be with us. Peterborough will expect an immediate return. Barnsley fans think that their team is much better than where they are now. Portsmouth and Bolton fans both expect to push for top 6 next season. Charlton are intending to improve their squad over the Summer. Add to that whoever ends up in 7th and 8th (right now that's Wycombe and Oxford) and we've got a whole bunch of teams who will expect nothing less than top 6 next season.

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chepstowblue added 22:04 - Apr 9 After listening to the delinquent in block22 row Q seat 9 for nigh on two hours I honestly thought that suicide would be my only option when I got home. Even my psychiatrist Dr Bellend would have to agree that this numpty was beyond help! As for the game...good for 15mins but then decidedly half hearted.So flaming slow in everything we did. Even though we appeared well in control an injection of tempo and a willingness to get a second goal was sadly lacking, and our lethargy was compounded by Burgess's stupid lunge and a wonder strike. On this evidence a mid table finish is on the cards again next season. We have to move the ball quicker or the average sides we've encountered in the past fortnight wont need to break sweat in order to get positive results against us. It's easy to see why Cambridge,Cheltenham, Morecambe have caused us problems.Punctuated by numerous stoppages this was one of the least enjoyable away days for many months.

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RobsonWark added 22:38 - Apr 9 Elizabeth added 17:30 - Apr 9 "Well done Cameron Burgess .. you cost us the game .. 😡😡😡" I blame Dominic Thompson again! It was his piss poor header that set up the chance! The guy gets more of a liability every match. No wonder Brentford didn't want him. We were playing some great football before he arrived at the club.
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KenHancocksBoot added 22:38 - Apr 9 Went to the game today and cannot disagree with most of the posts here. Inevitable disappointment, however there was nothing on display here we didn't already know. We are only one decent muscular striker away from being a good team when we are at full strength. Our time will come. Keep the faith!!
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KenHancocksBoot added 22:39 - Apr 9 What's Joe Jordan doing these days?
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Minneapolis_ITFC added 00:37 - Apr 10 Defense and Walton together, probably Championship status, our attacking options : League Two it would seem. Stands to reason we're stuck in the League we're at. McKenna has done well, real new horizon for the club name since coming in and we're streets ahead since Evans and Lambert took off but bottom line the strikers we have appear sub-standard. Any team that views or hopes to challenge a promotion needs a 20 + goal striker a season (or two for good measure) and we don't possess it. Real disappointment the season appears over now. Certain players have performed well, earned a salary, but others have been nowhere near good enough. That's why we've failed. A real goal scorer in the summer and Walton and McKenna stay on, there's every chance next year we can this time crack it.

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planetblue_2011 added 01:38 - Apr 10 We can't put teams to bed, we have all the play & possession but can't find the killer instant to kill off the game. Their goal you couldn't do much about it was a great finish but I'm sure that was the only shot they had on target. It's just so frustrating as it keeps happening to us, Oxford, Morecambe & Cheltenham all games we should of won & including today we could have another 8 points on the board which we would be in the playoffs. We are playing some good stuff but disappointing not to win. we need a striker for next season it must be on the wish list. Glad Norwood scored today though. Let's just beat Rotherham next sat, can't bloody stand them😆

1

algarvefan added 08:56 - Apr 10 An interesting comment from David De Gea the Man Utd goalkeeper after their loss to Everton yesterday, "We just can't score goals and finish games off, it's been the same for a while now". Sound familiar? Just a thought that maybe the way we set up and play tactically is the problem and not the players, KM has come to us as a former coach at Man U and would have brought that style with him no doubt. Man U have some excellent strikers but a lack of goals and we have players like Piggott, plenty of goals last season but very few this. If you watch Man U play their style lacks any urgency, although they dominate most games their results don't match their dominance. We are in Division 3 maybe time to reconsider our tactics?

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Kirbmeister added 08:57 - Apr 10 Christ it's mostly doom and gloom on here. If 36 points from 19 games from a squad KM inherited isn't good enough for some of you then I don't know what is. Yes we should have more points but we we're never getting promoted this season. We'll win the league next season.
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dirtydingusmagee added 09:47 - Apr 10 Algarve fan , we were like that long before KM was appointed. He is working with the same players. Front players we have are not up to standard we need.If KM gets the required backing [im sure he will] he will sort that area out. Bonne, lord knows how he has flopped like he has after tremendous start, albeit with less opportunity Pigott has failed abysmally, Norwood blows hot and cold [ AND has the annoying trait of wanting to dive into any fray and will run good distances to add his pennyworth so is also a liability, Jackson has come back from the dead ,But is he good enough really. IMO they need replacing. So to imply our failings are to do with KM coming from Man U is a stupid comment .

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dirtydingusmagee added 09:50 - Apr 10 Nobbysnuts, occasionally you add a fair comment, but in the main you are always at your happiest when things go t#ts up.
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Lightningboy added 10:30 - Apr 10 We've looked solid at the back since McKenna came in but have been let down badly by our powder puff “strikers”...think that Oxford equaliser a few games ago seemed to damage our team's psychology. 2 new strikers are a must this summer.
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algarvefan added 13:08 - Apr 10 dirtydingusmagee you may not agree with me, this forum is full of people with opinions, all different, I still say the way we play is too slow, too much sideways and backward passing and we lack goal scoring opportunity, if we were a little more direct at times it would our front me some time and space, it's the system not the man I'm being critical of. Also please note that in disagreeing with you I haven't been insulting to you, try it next time!!!!!

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