Special Edition: TST Wrecap and Takeaways
TST concludes tomorrow, but both sets of Dragons are flying home early.
A special tournament calls for a special edition! Below you’ll find mini-Wrecaps of each match as well as my thoughts on what real lessons can be learned from what is otherwise just a fun, and ultimately frivolous, summer tournament.
The TST Wrecap:
Wait…what is TST again?
Before we get into the actual match recaps, you should be primed that the TST rules are vastly different than regular soccer rules. For starters: there are no offsides, no throw-ins (kick-ins instead), no slide tackles, and no limit on substitutions: players can go off and come back on as many times as necessary. The games are played in twenty-minute halves on smaller pitches (with smaller goals) before the match reaches the tournament’s signature change: Target Score Time.
In this tournament, all matches must end with a goal. To accomplish this, each match concludes with “Target Score Time.” The Target Score is one goal more than the leading team has at the end of regulation. So if Team A is up 5-4, the target goal is six. Team A needs just one goal to win, but Team B need to score twice. To make TST (see what they did there?) even more interesting…a player is removed from each side every three minutes. So after three minutes of TST it becomes 6v6, then 5v5 after six minutes, and so on. So to answer your immediate question: yes, a game could end in a one-on-one battle.
It’s weird. It’s not really the soccer/football we know and love, but I’ll give it this…it is fun to watch. And watch it I did, so here’s a little recap of each match…
tl;dr: the TST Takeaways
Wait, what’s that? Since it’s not really Wrexham and not really football you just want the highlights? Well first let me say: rude. Second, sure I can provide that for you:
Wrexham lost in the Round of 16…again
In last year’s inaugural tournament Wrexham were eliminated in the round of 16. So it was again in year two.
The Wrexham Women were swept in the group stage
They put up a fight in the final match against the US Women, but ultimately the Women leave the tournament winless.Mark Howard put on a show:
Mark was very impressive in his role as keeper and captain of the Wrexham Red Dragons, particularly in game three against Desimpedidos. He had impressive, acrobatic saves throughout the tournament and scored two goals himself, including a game winner, with chances for more throughout Wrexham’s five-game run. It may not be a regulation goal or anywhere close to regular rules, but this was an opportunity for Mark to show he can still be trusted to keep the ball out of the net. Does this mean I want Wrexham to settle for him as our main keeper to start next season? No. But do I feel good about him waiting in the wings and starting lower-priority matches? Absolutely.
The kids are alright
The 18-year-old defender Aaron James, and academy sensations Harry Ashfield and Callum Edwards made the most of their chance to get in front of the Wrexham fans. James in particular played well as a winger, turning in some top-shelf defensive plays while also serving as something of a playmaker on the right side. A right wingback by training, he’s been deployed in the first team at center back as well. I wouldn’t be shocked if this puts him in contention for wingback minutes as well, as he appears headed towards a slightly increased role this year. Callum Edwards was also impressive, even if he didn’t walk away with a goal to his name. His quick, sly movements throughout the tournament showed his promise as a goalscoring threat.
As for Ashfield, I don’t think it will be long before we see him join the first team. He didn’t leave the tournament with a goal but he did manage to register an assist to go with the slew of quality shots he saw saved. He was also unafraid to get in the face of Premier League veterans who tried to push him around on the pitch. He’s got a fire in him, no question about it, and I’m looking forward to seeing him add to our midfield mix.
Now then, your Wrecaps:
Men’s Tournament
Game One vs FC Roha
The Wrexham Red Dragons looked a little rough in their first half back in Cary, NC. FC Roha dominated the first half, getting two easy goals past Mark Howard. Wrexham put in plenty of chances at the other end, but keeper Hozier was like a brick wall in front of goal. Harry Ashfield and Aaron James showed off some impressive skill throughout the twenty-minute first half and in the second half, ex-Premier Leaguer George Boyd got Wrexham on the board via an assist from Ashfield. A quick goal for each side followed and it was 3-2 Roha at the end of regulation.
In Target Score Time, Hozier continued to keep Wrexham at bay as the players dwindled away. Eventually, it would be 4 on 3 in favor of Wrexham after Roha’s Vendim Sinani earned a red card. But even down to just three players Roha played well and after ten total minutes of TST, Roha netted their fourth to take the victory.
Full scoresheet and video link here.
Game Two vs Saturdays Football
Wrexham’s second game of the tournament was positively scintillating. Fast, energetic play from both sides from the first minute to the last, headlined by two outstanding goalkeepers in Luis Birrueta and Mark Howard. Wrexham’s current #1 was worlds better in this match than he was earlier in the day, turning in a plethora of saves to keep Saturdays Football from scoring. Unfortunately, the same was true of Birrueta at the other side and the teams finished regulation deadlocked at 0-0.
That means TST for Game Two was simply “next goal wins.” Saturdays Football nearly had that next goal on several occasions early on, but Howard and his defenders rebuffed them all. No, in the end the next goal came from Wrexham’s George Boyd, before the first players were even removed. A hero for the Dragons in the inaugural tournament last year, Boyd was eager to pick up where he left off.
Full Scoresheet and video link here.
Game Three vs Desimpedidos
The Red Dragons (and the rest of Group F) entered the final group stage game with one win and one loss. Due to goal differential, however, the Dragons were in last after Desimpedidos’ victory over Rohas the night before, making the game a must-win for…well for all four sides.
The first half was a combative and temperamental one. Desimpedidos scored the opener early, but only after an initial save from Howard (it was his defenders that let him down on this one.) Then, something truly unexpected for this tournament happened: a fight broke out. The Desimpedidos keeper became enraged at Bickerstaff - we’re still not clear why - and then Harry Ashfield got into it with some players at the same time. Both benches cleared as the squads really went after one another. I know there’s $1 million on the line, but still, for a tournament that has the look and feel of a charity game…it was a little surprising. Just before the halftime whistle, Wrexham’s pressure finally boiled over and George Boyd was able to get the Dragons on the board.
There was a bevy of chances (and yellow cards) in the second half but ultimately no goals, so the sides went into TST with the magic number of three. Desimpedidos held the majority of possession in TST, but the real story here is Mark Howard. He put on an absolute show in TST: save, after save, after impressive save - including one you have to see to believe. If you watch one highlight video from the tournament, this should be it:
Then, down to four players a side, who should level the score? Mr. Mark Howard himself, playing goal-to-goal and taking his third close-range shot of the match. The sides lost another player and this time Wrexham chose to remove Howard, with Boyd returning to cover goal while playing outfield (these are some wild rules, let me just say that). Desimpedidos won the ball back while Boyd was moving upfield, so it seemed all over as Wrexham’s goal (and, indeed, their whole half) was wide open. But somehow the shot was put wide and the game moved on. Down to just 2v2, Boyd finally got the angle we needed and scored the winning goal, sending Wrexham into the knockout rounds.
Full scoresheet and video here.
Round of 32 vs Socceroof
We can make this a quick one: Wrexham dominated this game from start to finish. Wrexham netted three in the first half courtesy of a goal from Jake Bickerstaff and a brace from Elliot Bennett, with George Boyd adding a fourth and David Jones adding a fifth in the second half. With a target score of six, TST seemed like a foregone conclusion but Socceroof held Wrexham at bay until the sides were down to 4v4, when Mark Howard scored his second goal in as many days to send the Dragons to the round of 16.
Full scoresheet and video here.
Round of 16 vs Reggae Rovers
In what would be Wrexham’s final match of the Men’s tournament, the Dragons…didn’t put up much of a fight. For starters, both halves featured an own goal by Roger Espoinsoa (lucky for us he missed a hat trick) and by the time the game reached TST the Reds were down 0-4. Wrexham and the Rovers nearly come to blows a few times during regulation and Reggae players were spotted on several occasions pushing Wrexham players and slapping away offers to help them up off the turf on multiple occasions. They played well, but they hardly impressed this Wrexham fan. Regardless, it was a cagey TST for both sides and a goal didn’t go in until it was 3v3 when Wrexham were finally able to net a consolation prize. Unfortunately, the death blow wasn’t far behind as the Rovers netted their fifth and final goal needed to advance to the quarter-finals.
So, in the end, the Wrexham Red Dragons end their second TST run at the same stage as the first. A third installment of TST has already been confirmed for 2025, so we’ll see if the Reds are back for a third try next year.
Full scoresheet and video here.
Women’s Tournament
Game One vs Angel City
The Wrexham Women had an incredibly strong first half to start off their tournament, putting in shot after shot to the AC goal. Sadly, City keeper Kat Hess was equal to them and when she wasn’t, the crossbar and posts were. Then, shortly before halftime, Mariah Lee noticed Wrexham keeper Carly Telford off her line and fired a long shot from her half toward the open goal, scoring without any issue to make it 1-0 Angel City at halftime.
Just five minutes into the second half, however, Wrexham got on the board courtesy of - who else? - Rosie Hughes. Play was pretty tame for the next ten minutes before Moyer put AC on top again. Wrexham wouldn’t get an equalizer before TST, so three became the number to reach. Just over a minute into TST, however, an AC player went down after a header attempt that caught her hard on the temple. She eventually left the field under her own power, but only after a significant delay. AC kept the pressure on and just after the squads dropped to 6v6 AC’s Jessica Miclat scored the winner
Full scoresheet and video here.
Game Two vs Streetball FC Canada
In game two, the Wrexham Women faced the tough customer of Streetball FC Canada and the two squads were kept scoreless in the first half. Then in the second twenty, both clubs managed a goal a piece (Sabrina Flores scored Wrexham’s goal), sending the game to TST in sudden-death mode. Sadly, the death came for the Dragons as Streetball put it away after nearly ten minutes of TST.
Full scoresheet and video here.
Game Three vs US Women
With the eliminated men’s squad cheering on from the sidelines, the Wrexham Women had a mountain to claim in their marquee matchup against the US Women, entering winless and in last place. In order to seal second place and advance, they’d need to beat Team USA by a large margin and hope things went their way in the other matchup. They did not. We needed to Streetball to go undefeated for us to have a chance at reaching second an d they lost to Angel City FC. Meanwhile, our game was the Women’s best effort, but it still wasn’t enough to beat the Mia Hamm-Colleen Hacker-Michelle Ackers coached US Women. The two sides traded goals early (Bella Sember for the US and Nicole Baxter for Wrexham) before Wrexham gave away the lead with an unfortunate own-goal just before the halftime whistle. Rosies Hughes netted a brace in the second half, but sadly couldn’t seal the hat trick. Tori Dellaperuta scored the late leveler for the US Women, sending the squads to TST in sudden-death mode. Jodie Taylor sealed the 4-3 victory for the US Women after nearly ten minutes of TST, ending Wrexham’s involvement in the tournament.
Full scoresheet and video here.
That’s all for this special, TST-edition of the Wreader! See you back on Wednesday.
