3/1 To Win
‘To find themselves where they are is not down to luck. You can’t be lucky for more than half a season.’
They are the words of Max Lowe, Derby County’s buccaneering left back, who is enjoying his first taste of life as a young footballer out on loan at Shrewsbury Town.
The 20-year-old, of course, is not a stranger to the first team picture having broken through the Rams’ Academy ranks and into the senior fold last term.
This, however, is a whole new experience for him. Lowe is spending the remainder of the 2017/18 season with Sky Bet League One’s unlikely promotion dreamers Shrewsbury and based on our chat with the full back, it is clear that it is a move he is enjoying immensely.
“I have been there just over a month now and it’s been a whole new experience for me,” Lowe said.
“Working with someone like Paul Hurst has been good for me, with him being a former left back, so he has been mentoring me.
“Football, in general, has a physical aspect to it. There are a lot of bigger lads than me in this division and he has helped me adapt, how to deal with certain situations and how to use my body to my advantage.
“It’s my first time out on loan, but it’s been good that they have been in a similar situation to Derby in the fact that they are challenging for promotion."
Lowe, himself, admitted that he did not realise that Shrewsbury were doing so well in League One until he heard of Hurst’s interest in him.
That said, having been around the squad for just over a month now, he says it is easy to see why they are battling alongside teams like Wigan Athletic, Blackburn Rovers and Rotherham United for a place in the Championship next term.
“When I first knew Shrewsbury were interested, I didn’t realise that they were that high up in the league,” he admitted.
“Their defensive record is one of the best in the division too – another factor that is only going to benefit me being a full back. Shrewsbury were predicted to be in the relegation places, but to find themselves where they are now isn’t down to luck.
“You can’t just be lucky for a whole half of a season and although I haven’t been here long, you can see why they are in the position that they are.
“They consistently play well, they’re so organised and very rarely make mistakes.”
On top of being part of a promotion battle, Lowe is likely to be involved in the Shrews’ mission to reach Wembley in the Checkatrade Trophy.
His debut also saw him pit his wits against West Ham United in a televised Emirates FA Cup encounter at New Meadow.
Shrewsbury earned a draw from that to earn a replay at the Hammers’ London Stadium.
Only two months prior, Lowe helped Derby’s Under-23s record a 5-1 win there over West Ham in front of a couple of thousand supporters and this time he played 101 minutes of another tight cup meeting before the Premier League side scored their winner in extra-time in front of nearly 40,000 spectators.
Without a doubt in his mind, it is the biggest stage he has played on date.
“I trained on the Saturday after signing thinking I would just be on the substitutes bench at the most, but for the gaffer to bring me on shows that he must believe in me quite a bit,” he said about the original tie.
“The home game was a sell-out and the Shrewsbury fans were really good. We did well enough to a replay, but we went into the dressing room thinking we should have won it.
“The replay at the London Stadium was just crazy. That’s the biggest stage I have played on up to now and that was a great experience. Again, we did really well.”
Things might be going well for Lowe at Shrewsbury, but that hasn’t stopped him keeping track of his parent club’s very own promotion mission.
He said: “I’m buzzing with everything. I’m keeping track of Derby – I have my RamsTV pass – so I watch and listen to the games as and when I can.
“If we play on the Saturday, the first thing I do in the changing room is look for Derby result. It’s good to see they are still flying and they are proving a lot of people wrong that they can keep their momentum going.”
