Loan ranger Sean Thornton – who hopes to help Shrewsbury Town follow up their incredible seven-goal romp against Gillingham in Sunday’s big derby at Chester – insists he would not have dropped down to League Two for any other club.
The ex-Sunderland and Republic of Ireland under-21 international midfielder has now played in all four divisions in England after his Town debut last weekend. And although he prefers to look not too far ahead, the 25-year-old is happy to have made the switch for a month from Leyton Orient, revealing it was Town assistant manager John McMahon, his former youth team coach at Tranmere, who convinced him to head to Shrewsbury.
“This move really came out of the blue,” said Thornton. “I heard about it last Wednesday, spoke to John McMahon on Thursday and he persuaded me to come here for a month.
“No disrespect to League Two but I hadn’t thought about coming into this division, but I know John from my youth team days, he’s a good coach, a good man, so I thought why not, let’s give it a blast and see how it goes. I’ve got nothing to lose, all to gain.
“With the ground here, the manager and a decent side, it’s not like going to a League Two team really.”
Thornton agreed he could not have asked for a better debut as he helped Town overwhelm Gillingham on a memorable day at the Prostar Stadium.
“To get a win and get it the way we did with seven goals was pleasing,” he said. “I felt I had a decent game and hopefully I’ll just carry it on.”
As for the possibility of a longer stay in Shrewsbury, he added: “It’s way too early to even consider another month. It’s in my hands but it’s up to the gaffer. If I can come in, do well and help the team get a few results then I’ve done my job really.”
Thornton had hoped this would be a season he impressed for Orient but he quickly lost his place.
“My aim this year was to do well in League One and get back to Championship football, but the gaffer’s frozen me out the last couple of games for his reasons,” said the playmaker. “I just want to knuckle down here, do well and work hard, then we’ll take it from there.”
Best remembered for his days at Sunderland, Thornton admits he regrets calling time on his Stadium of Light career to join Doncaster for a club record £175,000 three years ago.
“I had a second half of the season in the Premiership which was a great experience,” he recalled. “To top it off, I was lucky enough to get player of the year.
“I then had two years in the Championship but made one bad decision I think in leaving Sunderland to drop two leagues. I just want to kick on now, play to the best of my ability and see what happens.”
Thornton now hopes to help Town consolidate their place among the early front runners in Sunday’s all-ticket clash at Chester (noon).
“I didn’t know it was a local derby until the lads said so,” he added. “I can’t see why we can’t go there and get the result we want.”
Boss Paul Simpson said: “Sean brings quality on the ball as he’s a good passer and always wants to be available.
“I’m hoping that he’ll improve even more as we never saw anything of him around the edge of the box on Saturday and he’s got real good quality for getting goals from midfield.”
