Shrewsbury Town

There’s a song that goes around, sung by the supporters of one club toward those of a club about to be relegated:

Que sera sera,

Whatever will be will be,

You’re going to Shrewsbury!

Que sera sera.

This is because Shrewsbury Town haven’t been in the second tier since 1989, and in their 130-plus-year history they’ve only been that high for 10 seasons. So they are always, well, down there somewhere.

They were founded in 1886 and made the Football League in 1950. They were in Division 3 for most of the next 30 years, until manager Ritchie Barker got them into the second tier for the first time after winning the 1978-79 Third Division. They stayed up for 10 seasons, made a couple of FA Cup quarterfinals, sold some players to big clubs – including David Moyes, future Everton and West Ham manager – and all in all had a nice run in the 1980s.

By 2003 they had fallen out of the league entirely, spending on season in what’s now called the National League (then the Conference), but they got back “at the first time of asking,” winning a penalty shootout in the promotion final when their keeper saved three straight from 12 yards. It’s been League One and League Two ever since.

One highlight was the 2015-16 FA Cup, when they won away to Cardiff City, at home vs Sheffield Wednesday, then lost to Manchester United at home in the 5th Round. The year before, in the League Cup while in League Two, they beat Blackpool at home, Leicester City away, and Norwich at home. This gave them a home game against Chelsea, who only advanced via am 88th-minute own goal.

2024–25 SEASON: 24th in League One (relegated), 1st Round FA Cup, 2nd Round League Cup

2025–26 SEASON: League Two (relegated 2025)

Two of their longtime rivals, Chester City and Hereford, actually went out of business; “phoenix” versions of each are now a few levels below the Shrews in the pyramid. Wrexham are also a rival, though it isn’t clear why. They will also get worked up about Port Vale, Wolverhampton, and Walsall.

Alas, last season they lost 29 of 46 games and finished bottom of League One.

Officially called the Shrewsbury Town Foundation Women, they play in the West Midlands Regional Women’s Football League, tier 5. Home games are at the same place as the men’s team.

They come out to “Catch Us If You Can” by the Dave Clark Five.

The old place, from 1910, was called Gay Meadow, and when this one opened in 2007, it didn’t actually have a name. So people just called it the New Meadow. If this seems quaint, consider that Barcelona’s Camp Nou is, in Catalan, simply New Field.

Now known for sponsorship reasons as Croud Meadow, it’s no Camp Nou but is a very nice ground. It holds around 10,000, depending on the occasion, with four all-seater stands. The Salop Leisure Stand on the south end houses the home supporters and includes the Football League’s first safe-standing setup. Away fans are in the north stand opposite.

A quick note on the old ground, though. It was on the banks of the River Severn, and for 45 years, a man named Fred Davies had a truly unique job: fishing balls out of the river! He sat in the front row near the team bench, with a tiny watercraft called a coracle. Whenever a ball went over the stand, off went Fred and his coracle to fetch it before it was lost downstream. For this money-saving effort, he was given access to every home game. His dad did it before him, by the way! He retired in 1987 and died in 1994, and there’s an impossibly charming 1975 video about this on YouTube; look for “Shrewsbury Town Ballboy.”

TOURS: None

GETTING THERE: It’s around two miles out from the center of town and the train station, but bus 27 from St. Mary’s Street to Brooklands will save you most of that effort.

PUBS: There’s a Fan Zone at the ground, and if you walk out from the center, swing by the Prince of Wales on Bynner Street, a supporters’ favorite.

GRUB: There are some chains across from the stadium, but much better options are in town. Nothing special at the ground.

AROUND TOWN: The above-reference taunting song would also seem to imply that Shrewsbury is a lousy place to spend time. Nothing could be further from the truth. It’s honestly quite lovely and was one of the more pleasant surprises of my recent explorations.

The town center sits on a hill in an oxbow of the River Severn, which as you might imagine made it easily defendable and therefore a place people liked to settle. Evidence of such goes back more than 4,000 years, and there was an important Roman settlement here as well. The current city was founded in the ninth century and has a largely intact medieval street plan. Since it was also spared bombing in World War II and urban renewal in the 1960s and ‘1970s, it boasts more than 600 listed historic buildings, including a tower from the old 14th-century walls.

The 1,000-year-old Shrewsbury Castle is worth a visit, as is a riverside garden called The Quarry. You can book a river tour, and the Market Hall has a variety of stalls and places to eat. But rather than specific major attractions, Shrewsbury’s hilly, shop-lined streets make it simply a pleasant place to walk around before catching some football over at the New Meadow.