GRIMSBY Town finally rediscovered that winning feeling as they recorded a superb three-goal victory over promotion-chasing Shrewsbury Town.

After a miserable run of 25 games without a three-point haul stretching back to September, two Dean Sinclair goals and a strike by Jean-Louis Akpa Akpro at last brought some signs of recovery.

In an open first half, the visitors created the better chances but it was Grimsby who took the lead in stoppage time when Sinclair converted a penalty after Akpa Akpro was fouled inside the box.

That gave the hosts a confidence boost and when Sinclair doubled his, and Town's goal tally on 57 minutes, the home fans began to feel that this might be the day when that elusive win arrived.

The result was put beyond doubt when Akpa Akpro got himself on the scoresheet shortly after the hour, with Neil Woods finally able to celebrate his first win in charge.

Two changes were made to the Mariners side following the defeat at Dagenham and Redbridge in their last league outing.

Nick Colgan returned in goal after missing the trip to east London, while Akpa Akpro was recalled in place of the injured Tommy Wright.

Olly Lancashire's quicker-than-expected recovery from injury meant it was an unchanged back four that lined up against the Shrews, with Peter Bore at right-back, Rob Atkinson partnering Lancashire in the centre of defence and Joe Widdowson starting on the left of the quartet.

Akpa Akpro began on the right of a four-man midfield, joined by Sinclair, Peter Sweeney and Jamie Devitt across the middle of the park, while Michael Coulson was partnered by Lee Peacock up front.

Loan keeper Mark Oxley dropped to the bench after making his Football League debut at Dagenham and the 19-year-old Hull City stopper was joined by Adam Proudlock, Nick Hegarty, Paul Linwood, Michael Leary, Bradley Wood and Mark Hudson.

Shrewsbury made the journey to Cleethorpes sitting sixth in the League Two table and looking to keep their play-off bid on track.

Paul Simpson's side included experienced striker Jamie Cureton, on loan from Norwich City, alongside 13-goal top scorer Dave Hibbert.

After a moving minute's silence in memory of former Town striker and Macclesfield manager Keith Alexander, the game kicked off in bright sunshine and it was Grimsby who had the first attack with an overlapping run by Widdowson.

Town won the first corner of the game with a minute on the clock and Devitt's left-wing delivery was headed behind for another flag-kick, which was cleared away from danger.

Shrewsbury's first chance came when Bore was guilty of giving the ball away close to his own penalty area and Cureton picked it up before laying it off for midfielder Terry Dunfield to drag a low shot wide.

That aside, the Mariners had started brightly and good work by Devitt on the left led to Bore having a 20-yard shot deflected wide for a goal-kick.

Cureton hit the side netting after latching onto a long ball from Lewis Neal, before Hibbert headed well over the bar after a free kick from the right of the Town penalty area.

A run from Coulson brought the next opportunity for the hosts to attack, with the Barnsley man picking up the ball inside the Shrews half and taking advantage of a slip to make progress down the middle.

The striker was to be thwarted before he could get a shot in though, with defender Paul Murray winning a challenge on the 18-yard line.

Town were playing good football in midfield, looking to keep the ball down and build up attacks patiently.

Shrewsbury were adopting a similar approach and they would have felt they should have taken the lead on 19 minutes when a clever through-ball found Cureton.The Norwich loanee was too quick for Widdowson but he failed to get his shot on target from the edge of the area.

At the other end, Coulson won a corner for the Mariners and Sweeney's delivery made its way across the six-yard line before Atkinson headed onto the roof of the net.

The visitors had another good chance when Town struggled to clear the ball as it bounced around their own box, before Hibbert pounced with a first-time shot from 15 yards that was held by Colgan.

A Town penalty appeal came when Devitt went down inside the area but referee Jon Moss saw no infringement and waved play on.

Both sides were looking to attack whenever possible but as the half-hour mark passed, there had still been relatively little to trouble either keeper.

That could have changed when Sweeney chipped into the path of Akpa Akpro but the Ivorian's first touch took the ball away from him inside the box, leaving Button to gather it unchallenged.

Grimsby were showing some signs of promise but all too often, the lack of a quality final ball brought attacks to a premature end and failed to see the Mariners attackers making an impression in the final third of the pitch.

Akpa Akpro's strength forced a corner on 40 minutes but Devitt's kick was headed away before a follow-up shot from Sinclair was blocked.

After a Shrewsbury break was halted, the Mariners launched another attack of their own, with Bore making ground over the halfway line before playing the ball to Coulson.He then hit a shot on the turn but it was straight at Button.

Two addedminutes were signalled at the end of the half and with just 30 seconds left of the extra period, the Mariners were given the opportunity to open the scoring.

Akpa Akpro was brought down inside the box by Shrews captain Kelvin Langmead and after the referee pointed to the spot, SINCLAIR stepped up and confidently dispatched the penalty kick into the bottom corner to make it 1-0.

That was the last real action of the half and it meant Grimsby took a priceless lead into the dressing rooms with them.

Shrewsbury had created the better chances over the course of the 45 minutes but they did not convert them, leaving Town to go in with the advantage.

The visitors made a purposeful start to the second half and they could have been on level terms within a minute of the restart.

A touch by Hibbert left midfielder Kevin McIntyre one-on-one with Colgan but the keeper made a good block when the shot came in from 12 yards.

More signs of promise from Grimsby came when Coulson played a one-two with Akpa Akpro before winning a corner on the left, in front of the Pontoon Stand.

The flag-kick was headed away but Shrewsbury never fully cleared their lines, leading to an extended period of Mariners pressure.

A shot by Devitt was blocked inside the penalty area by Joe Skarz, with the home players, management and supporters all appealing for a handball decision.

That was not forthcoming but seconds later, it was all forgotten as the Mariners doubled their lead.

Akpa Akpro burst into the box and had a shot blocked, before Devitt was also thwarted by Button as a scramble broke out inside the six-yard box.Eventually, with the keeper on the floor, SINCLAIR forced the ball into the net for his second of the game, with 57 minutes on the clock.

With a two-goal cushion, the Grimsby players suddenly appeared to have an injection of confidence and belief as they poured forward, roared on by the home supporters.

Akpa Akpro had another powerful attacking run and Coulson shot over the bar as Town looked to put the result beyond doubt, although Shrewsbury sent a reminder they were still in the game when they forced Colgan into action, stopping a low cross from the right.

But just after the hour, Blundell Park was sent into raptures when Town extended their advantage to three goals.

AKPA AKPRO picked the ball up on the edge of the penalty area and took a touch before hammering a low, left-footed shot past Button and into the bottom-right corner of the net.

Town were rampant now and with less than half an hour to go, it looked like the miserable run of games without a win was finally coming to an end.

Paul Linwood replaced Atkinson at the back for Town, as Jake Robinson came on for Cureton in the Shrewsbury attack at the same time.

Robinson had a chance to reduce the deficit when he tried his luck from 20 yards but the effort was comfortable for Colgan.

Nick Hegarty replaced Devitt for Town with a little more than a quarter of an hour to go, as the hosts continued to go for goals.

A cross from the right was headed down at the far post by Akpa Akpro before it was turned away for a corner by Button, who then held onto the delivery from the flag.

Dunfield hit a 20-yard shot for Shrewsbury that failed to cause any problems for Colgan, before the Town stopper claimed a high, deep cross from the left.

The visitors were having a good spell of pressure, albeit with a three-goal deficit to claw back, and their next chance came when McIntyre's cross from the left was headed wide by Robinson.

Adam Proudlock replaced Akpa Akpro with seven minutes to go and Town repelled further Shrewsbury pressure to preserve their clean sheet, with Hibbert seeing a late shot blocked.

Four minutes of added time were played before the referee's final whistle provoked the celebrations from the home supporters, who were finally sent home with a smile on their face.

With other results going in their favour, Town had reduced the gap to the safety mark to just four points and they will look to cut that further still when they head to Crewe Alexander on Tuesday.