Wrexham’s defence look to equal a club record today, a fact which speaks volumes about the solid foundations Dean Keates left behind. It also reflects well on Bryan Hughes if he is to be the man to get the record over the line. Keates constructed a formidable defensive unit, which set a club record for most league clean sheets last season. Today we can match … Continue reading Bryan Hughes Builds on Dean Keates’ Foundations
If we ever needed a strong mentality, it’s today. Last Tuesday’s defeat was a spectacular blow. It wasn’t just that we lost: it was the devastating manner in which we collapsed. Amazingly, as we kicked off we hadn’t let in a goal at home in the first half of a match all season. Indeed, we hadn’t conceded a home goal in open play before the … Continue reading Time To Roll Our Sleeves Up
So Bryan Hughes didn’t quite manage to equal the best start by a Wrexham manager by winning his first four games, but by way of consolation, here’s something to consider: how good might he be when he can actually pick from a full squad? It’s easy to forget, blinded as we are by Hughes’ positive impact on the club, just how many experienced players aren’t … Continue reading Positive Signs
We come into today’s match in horrible form, on our worst losing streak since January 2016 and failing to score in five straight games for the first time since April 2009. Defeat to Maidenhead would mean we’d lost six games consecutively for the first time since January 2008, when we suffered an eight-match losing streak. If we fail to score today it’ll be our worst … Continue reading Unwanted History Approaches
Okay, so we’ve tried three at the back. Can we put it back in its box now? I’m not convinced the Orient game was the right point to experiment, and I don’t particularly feel that we need to search for a Plan B. In general, when fans and the media in Britain talk about a Plan B, it tends to be shorthand for something drastic: … Continue reading Back Three Plan B’s Not For Me
So, should Shrewsbury be worried right now? They’ve just appointed a manager with 22 league games under his belt as a manager, all at non-league level. He’s got off to a good start, but quite apart from the obvious risks involved when you draw a conclusion from a tiny sample size, results don’t tell you everything. I need to establish some context first, in case … Continue reading Whoever Gives Sam A Scarf, That’s His Home
Let’s hope there’s no repeat today of our last trip to Maidstone, when the referee took centre stage. Sam Allison’s erratic performance had a massive influence on a day when almost everything went wrong for Wrexham. Our problems began before the match when Chris Dunn injured himself in the pre-match warm-up, so Christian Dibble was dramatically thrust into his Wrexham debut. Despite the disruption, we … Continue reading No More Madness at Maidstone Please!
Some things never change. Last season our defence was superb, setting a club record for most league clean sheets in a season, and the statistics tell us that this season we could be even better when it comes to shutting out our opponents. Incredibly, we kept seven clean sheets in our first ten matches of the season. That’s the second best tally in our history, … Continue reading Defending is Dead: Long Live Defending.
Until last season, our record against Borehamwood had a very pleasing symmetry to it. We’d played them five times, and won each encounter. Furthermore, they’d only managed one goal against us, and that was a penalty, as we racked up four 1-0 wins. Last April that all changed in a bad tempered and controversial match. Manny Smith was harshly judged to have pushed his man … Continue reading PREVIEW Wrexham AFC v Borehamwood
The start of every season is a step into a brave new world. The start of most Wrexham seasons is a terrifying charge into a burning building, punctuated by prayers, curses and a nagging question in the back of your mind about why you’re putting yourself through this. So, forgive me for clinging to familiar comforts. Our midfield and attack might have been reshaped, but … Continue reading Man Versus Beast
We’re unbeaten in seven matches against Maidstone United. We lost there the first time we played them, back in 1989, and since then have beaten them four times and managed three draws. We’ve enjoyed two emphatic home wins over The Stones. Their last trip to The Racecourse was an FA Cup second round tie in December 2014, when a rare Manny Smith goal gave us … Continue reading PREVIEW Wrexham AFC v Maidstone United
It seems odd to say it, but looking at Gateshead’s side is almost like seeing how this season could have been for Wrexham. After all, they started the season with the same number of players from Gary Mills’ 2015-16 squad as we did! I’ll get repetitive stain injury soon from going on about the damage Mills did to us this season, but it’s fair to … Continue reading How Manny Smith Illustrates Gary Mills’ Failings
