FOR the Rovers fans who haven’t yet seen their side on the road this season, they will have missed seeing them pick up 10 of their 13 points to date.

They will not have seen the club’s three clean sheets, nor many of their better performances. And those same fans on Saturday may well be wondering just why there was such a level of criticism levelled at Rovers after returning from league leaders Shrewsbury Town with a 1-1 draw.

Indeed, they may well point to the performance in the defeat to Doncaster Rovers at Ewood Park last month as objection to Tony Mowbray’s labelling of the one against the Shrews as Rovers’ poorest of the season. But it was hard for those present to disagree.

However, whether among the 1,619 in the sold-out away end at the Montgomery Waters Meadow, or following from afar, there will have been a great sense of relief when Bradley Dack found the net in the late stages to cancel out Toto Nsiala’s opener.

For 70 minutes Rovers were well below their best and it was refreshing to hear the honesty with which Mowbray spoke about his side’s performance after the final whistle.  Rovers realise that if they are to achieve their promotion aim this season then they must achieve standards higher than they produced here.

For much of the game they were over-ran by a Shrewsbury side who looked comfortable in their own skin.  Each player within their 4-1-4-1 formation had a specific role which they executed superbly.

Rovers, in contrast, looked a side still searching for an identity.  The number of long, straight, hopeful balls are not what Mowbray wants to see from his team, nor are they what will bring the best out of the attacking players they have at their disposal.

Danny Graham, starting his first game since August 12, will have been wholly disappointed with the lack of service he received.

Shrews midfielder Jon Nolan, the best player on the pitch, far too often found holes between the Rovers lines to exploit, while Derrick Williams found himself far too isolated against the lively Shaun Whalley.

But the positives were undoubtedly the late rally, with Rovers’ triple substitution with 18 minutes to go giving them an impetus to go and haul themselves level, against a Shrewsbury side who had won each of their seven games by one goal coming in to this.

Harry Chapman once again provided an X-Factor from the bench, with his direct approach adding a facet to Rovers’ attack that they had been previously lacking, as well as Dack coming up with his first goal, and getting through 90 minutes, for the first time this season.

But it was difficult, on this evidence, to remember that Rovers had in fact kept three consecutive clean sheets on the road coming in to the game, with goalkeeper David Raya and defender Elliott Ward in particular looking less than secure.

The goal which Shrewsbury scored, just before the hour mark, was particularly avoidable, as Rovers failed to their lines on a number of occasions, before Raya and Ward got themselves in a mess allowing Nsiala to hook the ball in.

The defender had also gone close in the first half, heading on to the bar after Raya punched a right-wing corner up, rather than away.

For a 10 minute period after the goal, Rovers were at sixes and sevens in defence, and would have fallen 2-0 behind were Raya not to have denied Stefan Payne with his feet when the striker was played through.

It proved to be an important stop, as moments later, Rovers' triple change took effect.  Chapman went close with a header, and a 25-yarder, before crossing for Dack to sweep home with five minutes to go.

Chances in the first-half were few and far between, with neither goalkeeper called in to action, with Rovers struggling to find any rhythm until their strength in depth came to their rescue late on.