Wrexham AFC don find demself for serious wahala as dem drop go seventh place for Championship table. After dem lose 2-0 to Birmingham City for St Andrew's, di gap between dem and sixth-placed Hull City don increase to four points. Na only four matches remain for di regular season, and Wrexham don collect just four points from di last fifteen wey dey available.
Manager Phil Parkinson don tell im players say make dem no just hand play-off spot give other teams. “Di weekend na about us,” Parkinson talk. “I tell di boys dis morning say di one thing we must make sure no happen na make we no give play-off berth to somebody else without dem earn am.” Di manager urge im side to attack di remainder of di run-in.
Wrexham destiny don quickly fall out of dia own control after just one league win for five matches. But Parkinson still dey optimistic. “Dat na our aim from now to end of season, to give everything we can to get inside top six,” e add. “But if we no do am, di teams wey get there, we go push dem all di way.”
Just two days after di loss to Birmingham, Parkinson collect freedom of Wrexham County Borough for im contributions to di club and community. Di 58-year-old manager say di honour give am chance to reflect. “E certainly give myself chance to reflect because you no get chance to do dat really, especially during season,” Parkinson yarn. “So e be great honour for myself and my family.”
Dis na similar position to wetin Wrexham see for 2024-25 campaign when dem drop out of League One automatic promotion places. Dem eventually finish second after winning dia last three games. Parkinson believe say di chance to take stock of di club current situation fit help dis season too.
“I remember di Bristol Rovers game where we be really flat for wetin reason,” Parkinson recall. “E be hard performance to put inside context really. I go away myself and get one day on my own thinking ‘na my job, and Steve, and Dave Jones and Aidan as staff to get di team functioning how we want am for weekend.'”
Defeats by Southampton and Birmingham City make Wrexham lose successive league games for first time since di opening two fixtures of di Championship season. Despite dis, Wrexham still dey inside play-off picture at dis pivotal stage of campaign, and dem dey above plenty established clubs for table.
Midfielder Oliver Rathbone believe dis fact alone suppose remind people outside di club about Wrexham astonishing rise. “We don lose back-to-back games, so e just about reminding ourselves say we be very good team and we get four big games to go,” Rathbone talk. “I think every fan for take being four points off di play-offs with four games to go.”
Rathbone add: “E be first time di club dey inside second division for long, long time, coming up against clubs wey don be Premier League teams and dey ahead of us for plenty ways. So I think e important say we just remind ourselves of dat, but still go inside last four games and give am everything.”
Despite di recent blip, Parkinson still dey determined to stay grounded as Wrexham focus remain on working dia way back into top six for final stages of campaign. Di manager note with delight di culture at di club throughout im rapid rise up di football pyramid.
“We don do well up through di divisions and e be meteoric rise for us,” Parkinson add. “But I like to think say, despite di outside exposure di club get, say we don retain our humbleness and try to keep culture running through di football club. Di togetherness of di area, di team, di supporters and di staff don carry us long way and our aim now na to give our supporters good finish to season.”
Full focus don dey on beating Stoke City at The Racecourse dis weekend to remain inside hunt. With twelve points left to play for, Wrexham race definitely no finish despite making am hard for demselves after suffering back-to-back defeats. Di quest for top-six finish still no over, although Wrexham need to make winning habit as dem dey go down di final straight and hope say Hull drop points.
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