Steve Evans thought Rotherham deserved to beat Shrewsbury

Posted Sunday, September 29, 2024 by PA

Rotherham boss Steve Evans felt his side deserved more from their 1-1 draw at second-bottom Shrewsbury.

The Shrews broke the deadlock in the 22nd minute through George Lloyd, who poked home from close range.

Rotherham, who have not won on the road in the league since 2022, found the equaliser after referee Sam Purkiss pointed to the spot in the 70th minute.

Purkiss deemed Mal Benning’s clearance of a corner a high boot, and Jonson Clarke-Harris converted the spot-kick into the bottom right corner.

“I think we are dominating the game when we lose a goal and go 1-0 down,” said Evans.

“But that has happened to us a couple of times this season already. We need to find a way to go to half-time, and we didn’t really hold it up in the forward areas, so we couldn’t get any momentum built.

“I think it looked like a poor game if you were here as a neutral in terms of the first half.

“In the second half, we were more dominant, and it was one-way traffic.

“It was a clear penalty, and it was such a dangerous challenge. I have just watched it back and there is a question of why he is still on the pitch.

“We score from the penalty and have a lot of play around their box and balls into it.

“You could see the home fans were shouting for the whistle at times, but we have drawn a game, and it’s a game we should have won.”

Shrewsbury head coach Paul Hurst was satisfied with a point.

He said: “I thought we played better; at half-time, I thought we were the better team, and we were 1-0 up, but I thought we could improve further.

“In the second half, we knew they would have a reaction, and when they bring Jonson Clarke-Harris on, it again shows the strength of their squad.

“We weren’t quite brave enough to get on the ball at times, and I think we could have done that better.

“We were also dropping deep, and there is a little bit of human nature, but you have to be strong to try and not make that happen to give yourself a better chance for second balls.

“Overall, I thought we defended our box well, and you know what you are going to come up against with a team like Rotherham.

“I have highlighted that and said that, and I think we had to defend a lot of free-kicks and corners and, for the majority, did pretty well.”