Shrewsbury boss Paul Hurst has asked supporters to "stick with us" following a tough start to the League One campaign.

Salop find themselves 23rd in the table, losing seven of their opening nine matches and winning just one.

The Shropshire club were beaten 2-0 by Stockport at Croud Meadow in midweek after goals from Ethan Pye and Kyle Wootton.

Another tough test lies ahead against Wanderers, and Hurst has called on supporters to stick with the team despite recent results.

“I think we knew at the start of the season the challenge ahead, that doesn’t change,” he told the club channels.

“I would probably suggest, for those who are really frustrated and maybe think we are going to come and roll Stockport over, try to do a bit of research.

“You only have to look at the table in general, you have Huddersfield and Rotherham in the lower half of the table. It is early days, admittedly, and they will want to climb.

“We have said how strong the league is, and a lot of people who have watched us are telling me they think we are playing pretty well and ultimately have had a tough start.

“There are not many easy games in this league, I have said that from the off. All I will do is keep working with the players.

“We ask the fans to stick with us and as I have always said, I think they are some of the best fans in terms of getting behind the players - not just throwing negativity.

“All I can promise is we will keep working hard to get the results that we all want, but we all know that is not going to be easy.”

Shrewsbury have failed to score in three of their last five matches and Hurst admits they need more “end product”.

“In terms of the game overall, I thought the lads performed pretty well,” he added. “I think we were on top of the game first half, then go behind to a soft goal.

“They then pick up the second ball and it is a good finish, but it is frustrating on our part. Second half, I knew they would improve to a degree but I still thought we played some good football.

“But there has to be that end product. I think too many times that quality you are asking for, certainly the delivery was not quite there.”