Biggins back at Shrewsbury amid Bloxham speculation

Harrison Biggins has made 17 appearances on loan at Carlisle, while Tom Bloxham has started 14 of Shrewsbury's 24 league games this season

Shrewsbury Town have brought back Harrison Biggins from his loan with League Two side Carlisle United following speculation over the future of fellow midfielder Tom Bloxham.

Town's League One rivals Blackpool are the side most strongly linked with 21-year-old Bloxham, who has made 126 appearances - with almost half of those from the bench - since making his debut at the age of 16 in September 2020.

"It's probably not just Blackpool who are interested in him," Town boss Gareth Ainsworth told BBC Radio Shropshire.

"Although that's the reports coming out at the moment and we'll see where that one goes.

"But there's a board here. It would be a group decision as to what it would take to get Tom out of here or to get him to stay.

"If people weren't interested in Tom Bloxham, then I'd be surprised. He's a threat, a quick player, a ball carrier. He's done well in his time here."

Town also face the threat of losing another midfielder in the window - 31-year-old once-capped Northern Ireland international Carl Winchester, who has been linked with a return home.

Carl Winchester made the most recent of his 68 Shrewsbury appearances when he came off the bench in Town's last game, the 1-0 defeat at Orient in 4 January

"Carl is missing his family over there," Ainsworth said.

"There's reports of that about and I know what that's like. I can empathise with it. At the moment it's just talk. People putting two and two together and making five - and we'll see how that goes. But I look after my players. It's really important to keep them happy."

Bloxham twice impressed inside a month against Steve Bruce's Seasiders, scoring Town's equaliser in a 1-1 draw at Bloomfield Road on New Year's Day.

He also spent the first half of last season out on loan with League Two side Morecambe.

Summer signing Biggins, son of former Burnley striker Wayne Biggins, played in all Shrewsbury's first six games of the season, only to then make a sharp exit when he was loaned to Carlisle on August transfer deadline day.

But, since then, Shrewsbury have had a change of head coach, replacing Paul Hurst with Ainsworth.

Town, bottom when Ainsworth arrived, are now in 22nd but are still eight points adrift of safety ahead of their next game - Thursday's home border derby with promotion-chasing Wrexham.