From The Archive | Happy New Year at the Meadow 

The 2017/18 season is one of the best in recent Shrewsbury Town history.

After steering us to safety in the second half of the 2016/17 season, Paul Hurst came agonisingly close to securing a promotion to the Championship for the first time in nearly 40 years.  

We had finished 2017 on a high, going unbeaten through December, winning three and drawing two. We welcomed Richie Wellen’s Oldham Athletic to Shropshire on New Year’s Day 2018, fresh off the back of two unbeaten away days in a week and sitting second in the league.  

The Latics found themselves in serious trouble at the opposite end of the table. They had won just one of their last eight games and found themselves sitting just one place above the relegation zone.

True to form, Salop started the game on the front foot, with Stefan Payne forcing an acrobatic save out of Johny Placide inside the opening ten minutes.  

Salop didn’t have to wait for the breakthrough, with Shaun Whalley latching onto a rebound from an Arthur Gnahoua effort to put us a goal to the good in the 16th minute.  

The experienced winger came close to doubling his tally for the day minutes later, curling a free-kick over the Oldham wall and forcing another great save out of Placide.  

Oldham came out all guns blazing in the second half. First, a Craig Davies effort from outside the area forced a save from Dean Henderson, before Anthony Gerrard tested the future England stopper with a close-range header.  

Salop came close to doubling their lead in the 66th minute, with Toto Nsiala heading just over the bar from a Whalley corner.  

Oldham would create one last chance in the 78th minute, forcing a low save out of Henderson. This would be the last notable action of the game, with the 1-0 win putting Salop five points clear in second place.