Steve Cotterill hoping Shrewsbury Town can build on big win

Saturday’s 1-0 victory handed the new manager his first in the league since taking over in what was a battling performance in Yorkshire.

The schedule is not relenting, however, with second-placed Lincoln the next destination tonight and while Cotterill is pleased with the atmosphere around the squad, he is aiming for another scalp in this ‘incredibly tough month’.

“It’s been nice and lively around the training ground and the lads have been bubbly, which they obviously haven’t been for a while,” he said.

“But this is another tough fixture. Since I’ve been here we’ve played the team, top, second, fifth and 10th in the league. We’ve certainly had some tough games.

“That’s without Sunderland to come on Saturday and Doncaster the week after.

“It’s an incredibly tough month but a good month for us.”

Cotterill and Town have already faced Lincoln this season, losing 4-1 in the EFL Trophy only a week ago.

But with both sides making changes for that clash, the manager insists they are expecting a slightly different test in the league.

“They’ll be quite a bit that they’ll replicate because they’ve been at it a bit longer with their style of play,” he added.

“They’re very good on the counter-attack, which is something we need to be aware of.

“The teams will change compared to the last game but I would say their style of play will stay the same. Michael has a good style of play with them.

“There’s a few things we managed to pick up in our game against them but mainly we’re working on their last couple games because predominantly that will be the players that will be involved.

“They’re second in the table and their form has been pretty good.

“They’re obviously a good team and it’s another tough test for us.

“We’re expecting a stern test, without a shadow of a doubt.”

Meanwhile, goalkeeper Matija Sarkic is determined to prove that the result against Hull was not a ‘fluke’.

“You can always learn from defeats and leading on from the game against Hull it can be a confidence boost for us,” he said.

“We want to show that it wasn’t just a fluke.

“We showed against Hull that we can beat anyone, that’s why this division is so exciting.

“We’re focusing more on ourselves than the opponents and if we do everything right we can get a positive result.

“They’re second in the league but we need to focus on what we need to do and take the game to them.”

At the training ground yesterday the players did a small amount of work on the grass, to ensure they are physically ready for the quick turnaround in games.

Cotterill said: “They’ve done very little, lots of it was in the meeting room debriefing Saturday and then moving onto Lincoln.

“It was a light training session and a few tactical things out there. It’s full on.”

When asked if the squad is free of any fresh injury or suspension concerns, he added: “Yes. It’s amazing when you win, you get very few injuries.”

Forwards Leon Clarke and Rekeil Pyke since October and September respectively with hamstring and thigh injuries.

The pair are not expected to be fit in time for tonight’s clash but Cotterill hopes to have an update soon.

“I’ll know a little bit more by the end of the week,” he said.

“Probably in the next press conference I’ll have a bit more of an update.”