Paul Simpson's recent fans question and answers from the Chester City programme.

Town fans were asked to send in questions for Paul Simpson via ShrewsWeb and ShrewsChat. We've put the best of the questions to the new Town gaffer and here are his answers.

Q - Shrewsbury have one of the best youth setups in the coca-cola leagues, and I've heard a lot of promising players are scouted and go to bigger clubs as it earns us some money, do you plan to change this so we can use more of our own home grown talent?

A - The youth set-up is something that we are definitely looking at. I don't think it we have lost loads of players who have been registered with us and then made money, there have been one or two who have gone and bits of compensation has been paid. We have to accept that we will lose players to bigger clubs but the big thing that we have to do is make sure that we have a network in place so we know about these players and have the chance to try and get them into us. We want to have a youth system that produces players for our football club and we have to devise a set-up that allows that to happen.

Q - First of all, it is great to see such a talented young manager as you come to STFC. Secondly, do you foresee a wholesale change in playing staff over the summer or are you prepared to work with the majority of players we already have to improve the performances.

A - I'm prepared to work with whoever we have. As I explained at the fans forum the other night we had 24 players under contract, Andy Cooke has now left and that leaves us with three players who are out of contract in the summer. There are 20 players under contract and my intention is to make changes to the squad but it will be a slow process. We will work with the players who are here until either their contracts expire or someone decides they want to take them away and we do a deal.

Q - What sold the club to you, to make you want to join us?

A - I came and looked at the set-up, the stadium is a fantastic stadium at this level and it has the potential to grow as the club grows. The aims and ambitions of the chairman and the directors match my own, I wanted to come to a football club that I believe has a chance to be successful and that is the feeling I got when I came here.

Q - In football there is a lot of pressure on the manager to perform spectacularly from the off. How do you manage to ignore all the abuse and concentrate on your job?

A - it's difficult to ignore it and I don't think you can ignore it to be honest; you just have to be able to deal with it. I know what I want to do, I know what type of players I want to have in to help us do it, and I know how I would like them to be when it comes to training, professionalism and discipline. I'll do it the way I think it needs to be done, if it all works then fantastic but if it doesn't then it definitely won't be through a lack of trying through me.

Q - How do you plan to help the club improve?

A - I think all football teams are geared around the team that is out on the pitch and if the team is winning and playing football that is getting success then the whole football club tends to develop. My role has to be to put a team out there, with the rest of the staff that achieves some level of success for us.

Q- Will you look to bring in quality loan players along the lines that Hereford has this season, or just players that you think we can sign in the long run? I am all for having top class players in on loan, but only if it is for the whole season, not just for a month here and there

A - Loan signings are a bit hit and miss, sometimes you can get them to be committed to the club but at other times they don't really care about the club - it can be a fine line. I am prepared to use the loan market but as with permanent signings I have to believe that they will be the right players to make us a better team, whether that is in the short term or the long term it doesn't really matter.

Q - Are you a big fan of cup competitions?

A - Yes I like the cup competitions and think they are important to the club to get a good run. Cup competitions create an increase in revenue and also they give the fans something different and a big buzz. I've been involved in some great cup ties, have been to football league trophy finals twice at the Millennium, I've played in an FA Cup semi-final and had good cup runs with other teams. I want to be involved in the cup and hopefully with a bit of luck we can get good draws and progress next season.

Q - No one has a crystal ball but where do you hope Shrewsbury will be this time next season .do you think a season of consolidation or could we with your leadership and a few new players be pushing for better things?

A - I think the infrastructure is there to push on. I don't think any manager is allowed a season of consolidation, I think you have to be aiming to be successful and my aim is to be successful next year. I won't make any predictions as to where that will be because I have no idea what players we will be able to bring in and what sort of finances will be available but my aim is to be competing at the other end of the table next season.

Q - We have a number of young players at the club so how do you rate your management skills in developing younger, less experienced players?

A - I've been there, I can coach, I can talk to players, I can encourage or I can give them a volley if needs be. It's about managing them all, some young players respond to a quiet word whereas some respond to an aggressive word but that is the same with experienced players. The young lads will be treated how I feel is the right way to do it and hopefully by getting games and showing me that they deserve to be involved in games. The best way for young players to develop is by playing in football matches that really matter and that is out there in first team games.

Q - You've spoken of there being problems at the club that need addressing.

What are they?

A - When I say problems it doesn't necessarily mean that it is a major issue. What I mean is that there are things that I believe need to be changed to make the football club be run in a way that I would like it to be run. I've been involved in football for 26 years now and I've been at some very good clubs which have been run very professionally. Here I feel that it has been one of those situations where something has been done in a certain way for years so that's how we do it but we haven't had the results by doing it that way so let's try something different. Let's see if we can have a different approach which will give a different mentality and a different feeling at the football club and hopefully a different set of results as well.

Q - Last time Shrewsbury got promoted out of this league we played with two orthodox wingers, do you think that is the best way to get promotion out of this league?

A - If you have two good orthodox wingers then yes. If you have two orthodox wingers then you need to have two good strikers and a midfield player who are going to get in the box and stick it in the back of the net. I want to play a style of football that wins games, if that means playing with two wide players who can go past a full-back and get balls in then fantastic, if it means playing with three strikers who can interchange and cause problems then I'll play that way. It's all about getting the players in and adapting a system that suits them the best.

Q - Which of the current top-flight Managers inspires you and why?

A - I think you have to look at Sir Alex Ferguson for how long he has stayed in the game, for how he's built a football club from when he came in to what it is now and I think he's done a fantastic job. If you look at someone like Tony Mowbray and the way that he has got his West Brom side playing in a league that is very very physical. With such a massive carrot at the end if you are successful he has stuck to his principles and has continued to pass the ball, even when they had a tricky patch during the season, and has stuck to his ideas and hopefully with one more result they will achieve the promotion they definitely deserve.

Q - Will you allow the boys to take part in soccer AM's cross bar challenge? What a great way to build team moral.

A - yeah I will, I think it is a good thing and it is a fun program and I don't think there is any shame going on it so it is something that I won't be stopping.

Q - You were a great attacking player in your days, as previous managers have failed to bring out the best in our attackers, are you going to adopt a more attacking style for next season?

A - I want to be more attacking as the best way to win games is to get crosses and shots in so you have to be attacking to do that. You have to make sure that you are solid defensively as well and I want to be a team that is scoring goals and ideally clean sheets at the other end as well.

Q - Rumours are that you have been house hunting in Ellesmere, if so what is attracting you to the area.

A - I'm looking in all areas to be honest with you. I'm looking for the right school for my son Dominic and looking to find the right house as well. Ellesmere is one place that I've looked at but I've looked all over and there are some really lovely areas around here where I believe I can find a nice house to settle in.

Q - Paul, I've seen every game that you have been in charge of. There has been little or no improvement in performances. Are we likely to see wholesale changes in the summer and is the 'spine' of the side something that you will look to address?

A - To be honest there hasn't been a massive improvement because there hasn't been a massive change of players. We've changed the way that the players are training everyday and we starting to get them into a livelier training regime. I knew a magic wand couldn't just be waved and things changed overnight. Yes I want to build a solid spine in the team and that has to be my intention over the summer and the players who are here can fit in around those thoughts. We start pre-season on July 3rd and hopefully the players will be fully aware and fully fit and come next season that is when the job will really start for me.

Q - Is the captaincy something that you will look to change for next season? I think Ben Davies has struggled with his own performances since he took the armband in January?

A - The captaincy is one of many things that I'll be looking at. Ben Davies does a hell of a lot of work off the pitch in a captain's role that doesn't ever get recognised. He's an important part in the way he does that role but if I think next season that Ben Davies doesn't deserve to play in the side or isn't the right man for the captaincy then I'll make that decision. At the moment I don't have any problem with Ben Davies being the captain.

Q - Did you feel at any time that relegation could have been a strong possibility, and how much of a relief was it to finally chalk up that elusive win?

A - When I came into the club I though there was a possibility of going down because when you're on the run of results that we were on that is relegation form. Yes we were more than capable of getting relegated, now fortunately we have got enough points which means we can't go down and that is a massive relief because all the time that I was planning for next season I had one eye on what could happen if we went down to the Conference and one eye on what would happen if we stayed in the football League. Now we know we are in the Football League we can go full steam ahead and plan for next season.

Q - Why do you think that we are generally so poor away from home? Some would point out we aren't much better at home but we look easily beatable on the road and results prove that.

A - When you are at the bottom of the league and are struggling like we have been it's because your home and away form are generally poor. There are problems and we need to be more solid away from home, we need to be ruthless in the way that we go about it and it is a big thing that we need to improve on. We need to improve on home form and away form next season if we have any intentions of being successful.

Q -What changes have you put in place to the scouting network at the club?

A - At this point in time it's something that I haven't done anything to change but it is something we are talking about trying to change. At present we use a system called the Scouting Network to get out match reports and I have a meeting with them this afternoon (Tuesday). I didn't change Alan Fogerty; he chose to leave on his own before I even got the job. It is something that I want to make better for next season because I think it is not only important that we have the coaching staff and myself watching games but also have someone who is seeing games on a regular basis to pinpoint players who could do us a job.

Q - Are you happy with the budget that you've been given for next season by the chairman?

A - At this moment in time I don't have a budget for next season because we are still in the process or working it out. Looking at what predicted revenue from season tickets sales and commercial revenues because all of those things increase my budget and the more we can bring in through tickets and sponsorship then the more my budget is allowed to be. In the discussions we had when I got the job I was fairly happy with the size of the budget and like every manager I would always say that I want more. Hopefully over the next few weeks it will become a lot clearer of what our budget will be.

Q - How far do you think you can take the club?

A - I honestly don't know the answer to that question. The structure is in place to definitely be able to compete at League 1 level, when we get to League 1 level we will be able to decide if the club is strong enough to compete at the right end of the table to take us to the next level. My aim is to be successful, I don't want to stay in League 2 for every long, when I get to League 1 I don't want to stay there very long and want to go on and try and get back up to championship level. If this football club could sustain that and could provide a budget to get us into League 1 and then the Championship then there is no reason that the infrastructure that is in place shouldn't be able to go that far.

Q -Most people are of the opinion that the side lacks goals from its strikers. Is this an area that you think needs strengthening?

A - In my opinion this side lacks goals from every area of the team, I don't think centre-halves have scored enough, central midfielders haven't scored enough, Dave Hibbert is the only one you could say has been a consistent scorer. Dave Hibbert might turn out to be a 20 goal a season man next season and we need to have someone alongside him so that we are get 35 to 40 goals from our strikers, wide players have to chip in with 8 or 9 goals. Midfielders need to be chipping in with 7 or 8 goals and if you have got that then you are going to score a quite a number of goals and have a reasonable chance.

Q -The players are clearly currently low on confidence. How do you go about boosting players' confidence and attitude?

A - confidence is strange thing because no one can actually give you confidence, that comes from working hard in training, from practicing and giving yourself that belief that in a tight situation you have the ability to do a skill, whether that is a pass, a turn, a shot or whatever. That self belief only comes from doing it day in day out, results will give players confidence and if you are winning games then it is always easier to try things. Our aim is to work with the lads until the end of the season and then all the way through the pre-season programme so come the start of next season they are all confident in their own abilities.

Q - Paul, many Town fans harshly turned on Gary Peters at the first signs of a downturn after three seasons of continual improvement. With this in mind do you feel you will be afforded much time to build your own side or will you need (and be expected) to produce a playoff challenge next season? What do you feel are reasonable expectations for next season? What, if any, expectation levels have you been given to you by the board?

A - I always find it's very hard on a manager when fans turn but they are perfectly entitled to their opinions. In football nowadays you don't get given time and I think if he's had three seasons then that is a reasonable amount of time. I hope that I'm given three seasons because normally you have to produce straight away and you are expected to make a challenge. My expectations for next season are to be challenging at the top end of the table. That is where I want to be and that is where the board but I can't guarantee that until I know what squad we've got, what budget we've got, what players I can bring in and what can go out. I won't give predictions but I will work with the squad and do what we can to try and give the fans something to be happy about.