Won in 16 Seconds
A quick start on Saturday ushered in 179 minutes of scoreless play from the Reds (and their opponents), but two big injuries loom large over The Racecourse.
One goal was worth four points in Wrexham’s return to the pitch this week.
The Wrecap:
Rotherham United 0 - 1 Wrexham
For days before this match, rumors were circulating online of Jack Marriott sustaining a serious injury. Wrexham were mum on the topic, but when the lineup was posted with Mullin starting and Faal on the bench instead of Marriott worry set in. Phil would confirm the fans’ fears after the match (see below) but any fears we might have had about Mullin’s form were assuaded…and fast. Just sixteen seconds into the match, Mullin received a beautiful cross from - who else? - Ryan Barnett, and put it away for his first league goal of the season and Barnett’s league-leading fifth assist.
The following 89 minutes didn’t produce a second goal, but it did generate a fairly gritty, even contest despite Wrexham ending up with 66% possession. The Millers still took 12 shots, 7 of which were on target. The Reds took 17 of their own, but despite excellent displays from Mullin, Barnett, and McClean, Wrexham settled for just the one early stunner to leave Rotherham with all three points (in no small part due to another top-shelf showing from Okonkwo). Most outlets awarded Barnett MotM, but I’m giving mine to Mullin. He needed to prove himself this match - to Phil, the fans, and to himself - and he did just that with the goal, four shots on target, and a few perfectly-executed defensive efforts.
Read the full report from Wrexham here.
And watch the highlights here or below:
Match Facts:
Starting Lineup: Okonkwo, O’Connell, Scarr, O’Connor, Barnett, Cannon (Rathbone 62’), Dobson, Lee, McClean, Mullin, Palmer (Fletcher 70’)
Bench: Burton, Brunt, Bolton, Faal, Revan. Rathbone, Fletcher
Goals: WRX - Mullin (1’)
Yellow Cards:
WRX - Scarr (45’+1), Mullin (45’ +3), Palmer (53’)
RTH - Powell (75’)
Wrexham 0 - 0 Huddersfield Town
For the first time since March, Wrexham have dropped points at the Racecourse. Phil marched out an unchanged starting XI for yesterday’s match with Huddersfield, although Fletcher was missing from the bench. Phil would state after the game that Fletch is dealing with a resurgence of his knee issue from last season. “Fletch is a real problem, a real blow for us. It flared up over the weekend." Faal was the lone striker on the bench as a result.
The Reds did very well in the first half, controlling 55% of possession and getting three shots off while holding the visitors to just one. It was a frustrating and gritty forty-five minutes, with Dobson creating the most chances for the squad. The second half was almost the exact opposite - right down possession. Huddersfield ended with 55% of the ball and fired off nine shots to Wrexham’s two. Chances for the hosts became few and far between, while Okonkwo was really worked in the home goal. One highlight of the second half was record-signing Mo Faal’s league debut, relieving Palmer for the final nine minutes.
Wrexham were handed one glorious chance to steal all three points in the final minute of stoppage time when the ball found Barnett who served a typically top-notch cross to Mullin…who blasted the ball way over the net from a relatively close distance. He would drop to the floor and smack his head against the ground several times in frustration, matching what I was doing at home.
The point we did get was largely due to one man: Arthur Okonkwo. Despite the constant pressure in the second half, he kept the sheet clean and for that, he’s my Man of the Match as he also came up with three saves, ten recoveries, and even one chance created from a long ball.
Read the full report from Wrexham here.
And watch the highlights here or below:
Match Facts:
Starting Lineup: Okonwko, O'Connell, Scarr, O'Connor, Barnett, Dobson, Cannon (Rathbone 74’), Lee, McClean (C), Mullin, Palmer (Faal 82’)
Bench: Burton (G/K), Brunt, Boyle, Bolton, Revan, Rathbone, Faal.
Yellow Cards:
WRX - O’Connell (48’)
HUD - Lonwijk (20’), Kasumu (52’), Miller (75’)
Women’s FAW Cup: CPD Llanystumdwy 0 - 11 Wrexham
To kick off their 24/25 FAW Cup campaign, the Wrexham women were matched up with amateur club CPD Llanystumdwy and…it went just about how it should have gone. It was a complete blowout by the Reds, but it was still a contest heading into halftime. Lightfoot and Fuller both scored in the first 45’, but the second half is where the beatdown commenced. Goals flowed in from Pritchard, Clark, Davies, with braces from Cairns, Iddenden, and Hughes to cement the lopsided score. It wasn’t the toughest of competition, but hopefully, this will serve as a confidence booster to the squad as they head back into league play.
Read the full report from Wrexham here.
Match Facts:
Starting Lineup: Morgan (C), Lovett (Davies 60’), Sharp, Clark, Lightfoot, Fuller (Allen 46’), Gibbard, Cairns, Pritchard, C. Jones (Hughes 55’), Suckley (Iddenden 55’).
Bench: Cravem, Davies, Allen, Hughes, Iddenden.
Goals: Lightfoot (11’), Fuller (34’), Cairns (53’, 65’), Pritchard (56’), Clark (59’), Davies (70’), Iddenden (74’, 90’), Hughes (76’, 88’)
Yellow Cards:
WXM - Suckley (37’)
U18s: Bradford City 0 - 4 Wrexham
The Academy was on the pitch again last Friday where Rio Owen continued his hot start to the season with his second brace of the week, bringing his total up to ten goals across all youth competitions. Hari Roberts and Callum Edwards were responsible for the other two goals in yet another strong display from the Little Dragons.
Match Facts:
Starting Lineup: Elliott Jones, Tommy Clayton, Tom Kelly, Alex Moore, Dafydd Edwards, Max Purvis, Callum Edwards, Joe Rees, Rio Owen, Sam Chesworth, Keane Hazeldine
Bench: Oliver McTweed, Bryn Owen, Hari Roberts, Daymeon Alves Almeida, Umar Nawaz
Goals:
WXM - Owen (1’, 59’), Roberts (73’), Edwards (78’)
Current Tables
League One
Adran Premier
News from the Week:
Jack Marriott Suffers a Broken Leg
There is no sugar coating this one: our top scorer is down and very much out. Phil confirmed after the Rotherham match that the rumors were true: Marriott broke his leg in training last week:
It was a really low day for us all at the training ground on Thursday. Jack struck a ball at goal with no-one near him but his foot went from underneath him and he's broken his fibula so he faces an operation on Monday. I'm thinking four months minimum at the moment. It is a serious injury. We feel for him a lot but unfortunately throughout the course of the season, things happen.
Phil also added that he isn’t considering chasing a replacement striker in the January window…but that was before Fletcher hurt his knee this week. Mullin and Palmer’s performances between now and January may change his tune, but as long as Fletcher’s knee isn’t a lengthy injury, both he and Faal are viable starting options behind Palmer and Mullin, with youngsters Edwards and Rainbird awaiting their first team debuts. Not to mention that Lee and McClean have both served as strikers in the past, and Rathbone has had sporadic striking experience at his former clubs.
Nevertheless, this is a huge loss. Jack had inarguably claimed the starting striker role from Mullin while he was injured and has played a big role in each match he played this season, even when he didn’t log a goal. Let’s hope he can beat his timeline, but even if his rehab goes incredibly well, I can’t imagine we’d see him anytime before the end of January at the absolute earliest. Personally, I’d say late February or early March is more likely.
Fletcher Injures Knee
As I’ve already mentioned, Phil revealed that Steven Fletcher has been dealing with a knee injury, stating that “It flared up over the weekend.” This indicates to me that it’s the same knee that Fletcher had surgically repaired mid-season last year. If Fletch is also looking at a lengthy spell on the sidelines, Phil will likely have no choice but to fish for a more experienced striker to fill in this January - and he admitted as much to The Athletic’s Richard Sutcliffe after yesterday’s match.
Meta Quest Announced as Back-of-Shirt Sponsors
Arriving at the Racecourse for yesterday’s match, each Wrexham player was sporting a new accessory: a Meta Quest headset. The product placement ushered in the official announcement: Meta Quest will be the back of shirt sponsor for the Wrexham men and women’s squad, as well as “the Official Mixed Reality Partner of Wrexham AFC and Wrexham AFC Women.” In a statement, Rob and Ryan said:
We’re so excited to welcome Meta Quest as our back-of-shirt sponsor. Meta Quest allows you to immerse yourself in new worlds and experiences and is all about connection—something that resonates with us at Wrexham AFC. Whether it’s our journey with this incredible club or the bond we share with our supporters, it’s about bringing people together. Plus, now we can finally live out our dreams of being on the pitch without pulling a hamstring.
Beyond the fun, Wrexham’s announcement alludes to the squad using the headset in training as well. Whether that’s true or not, it’s another enormous sponsorship deal for the club and one few others in League One would be able to pull off. I wouldn’t hold my breath waiting for Zuckerberg to show up at the Racecourse, though.
FA Cup Match Moved
Our first round FA Cup fixture with Harrogate Town was selected for SkySports coverage in the UK and as a result has been pushed back a day to 11/3 at 10:30am EST/3:30pm GMT. The FA Cup is covered by ESPN+ in The States.
Wrexham Turns 160
While we didn’t mark it with a win, yesterday was the 160th anniversary of Wrexham AFC’s first match. The Dragons’ first opponents were the Prince of Wales Fire Brigade, home at The Racecourse, right next to the Turf Hotel where the club was founded. The visitors won 2-1. There aren’t many records of the match, and I failed to find a picture from the match, but the Wrexham Archive did provide me the very first Wrexham starting XI, complete with four Thomases:
Thomas Broster
Thomas Hanmer
Thomas Heath
Thomas Sykes
George Johnson
Charles Kershaw
Edward Knibbs
Joseph Roberts
John Taylor
William Tootell
Happy birthday, Wrexham! 160 looks good on ya.
The Week Ahead
10/26 at Charlton Athletic
US: Paramount+, iFollow. UK: Skysports+
10am EST / 3:00pm BST
Charlton are coming off of back-to-back draws, securing only one win in their last six outings. They are currently 11th on the table, but that’s actually higher than they should be according to their FotMob rating. By that metric, they’re the 18th-best squad. In fact, as a squad, they rank in the top three in just one category: Fouls per match. Individually they lack some punch as well. Striker Chuks Aneke leads the league in shots per 90’…but they haven’t been very effective: he’s scored only once in the campaign. Conor Coventry is their top-ranked player, however, and the midfielder is legitimately one to watch out for, currently ranked the 15th best player in League One based on FotMob rating. We’ve got three ranked above him: O’Connell, Barnett, and Cleworth…who was spotted in training gear before the match today so who knows…maybe he’ll be back sooner than we think.
Women: 10/26 vs Cardiff Met
US: iFollow. UK: Skysports+
10am EST / 3:00pm BST
Cardiff Met are one of only two squads behind Wrexham on the table. With just one point, Cardiff are desperate for their first win and Wrexham need to keep that from them at all costs on Sunday. If Wrexham are going to break into the top four before the league splits for the playoffs, they have to string together some wins. Against this struggling squad is the perfect place to start a win streak.