Joe Hart helps Shrewsbury to 2-1 comeback at Salford in one-night coaching stint
joe hart stepped in for one night as Shrewsbury Town’s goalkeeper coach at Salford and watched his boyhood club come from behind to win 2-1 in League Two. The former England and Manchester City goalkeeper — who hung up his gloves in 2024 and has worked as a pundit on 's Match of the Day and for TNT Sports — offered expertise while the Shrews search for a permanent goalkeeper coach.
Joe Hart at Moor Lane and Peninsula Stadium
Hart was spotted on the pitch in a Shrewsbury tracksuit at Moor Lane, the venue also referred to as the Peninsula Stadium, ahead of the League Two clash with Salford City. The club confirmed his involvement was for one night only: he was asked by manager Gavin Cowan to assist with preparations and to help warm up goalkeeper Matt Cox and his backup, Will Brook. A camera crew followed Hart as he filmed content around the ground.
Gavin Cowan sought help while Brian Jensen role remains vacant
Cowan described Hart’s appearance as simply a mate helping mates, saying he and David Edwards had been in dialogue with Hart about goalkeeper matters and that Joe had volunteered to come down to offer his expertise. The club is without a permanent goalkeeper coach following the departure of Brian Jensen, with former Town goalkeeper Harry Burgoyne assisting on an interim basis. Cowan said he expects the vacancy to be filled imminently and that staff will try to persuade Hart to do more than the one-off appearance, but that the current plan is a temporary fix while they make an appointment this week.
How the match turned: Cox error, Sang strike and Boyle winner
Salford took the lead late in first-half stoppage time when Shrewsbury goalkeeper Matthew Cox pushed a mis-hit Ryan Graydon volley into team-mate Luca Hoole and the ball rebounded off the centre-back into his own net. Shrewsbury drew level six minutes after the break when Tom Sang curled the ball into the bottom corner from the edge of the box, and the comeback was completed in the 76th minute when Will Boyle fired a low shot past Matthew Young to make it 2-1. The result was Shrewsbury’s fifth straight win; Salford have lost five straight games.
Karl Robinson on accountability after Salford defeat
Salford manager Karl Robinson told supporters to direct their frustration at him rather than his players, saying, “Come for me. Please. Not my players. ” He accepted responsibility for the club’s issues, saying the team must learn from moments in matches where control was lost and then regained too late. Robinson remained bullish about the squad’s potential, predicting the team is capable of a 10-game run and expressing 100 per cent confidence that it will turn around its form.
joe hart’s profile: local roots, City record and media work
Hart’s ties to Shrewsbury are longstanding: born in the town, he was still a pupil at Meole Brace School, aged 15, when he was first named in a senior matchday squad as a substitute for Shrewsbury in 2003. He made more than 260 appearances for Manchester City and won the Premier League twice during his playing career. Since he hung up his gloves in 2024, joe hart has worked regularly as a broadcaster, appearing on 's Match of the Day and on TNT Sports’ coverage of the Champions League and Europa League. Some coverage has described him as a former Celtic hero and a Celtic title winner, while other accounts emphasise his long association with Manchester City and his hometown club.
What makes this notable is the convergence of Hart’s local ties, top-level playing career and media profile into a single, short-term coaching intervention: a friend called on to steady a club in transition, who then watched the team deliver a measurable result — a 2-1 win that extended Shrewsbury’s positive run.
