Tom Bayliss’ late goal gave Shrewsbury their third win in a row in League One, as they snatched a 1-0 victory at struggling MK Dons.
It was a smash-and-grab from the Shrews, who had little of the ball throughout at Stadium MK, but Steve Cotterill’s side are up to ninth in the table, five points off the play-off places.
MK Dons started the brighter and it needed a good save from Shrewsbury goalkeeper Marko Marosi to keep out Mo Eisa’s curling effort from outside the box.
The lively Jonathan Leko then fired a shot from distance over on the half-hour, but a first half largely lacking in quality finished goalless.
The Dons continued to do much of the pressing after the restart, with Eisa having a free kick deflected narrowly over, but clear-cut chances remained at a premium.
Just when it looked as though a forgettable encounter would end in stalemate, Bayliss stole the points for the Shrews in the 89th minute by slotting past Jamie Cumming after being played in by fellow sub Ryan Bowman.