Even for a club buoyed by back-to-back promotions in the previous two seasons, the chant “The town are going up…” that greeted Jack Marriott’s opening goal for Wrexham away against Peterborough United on Saturday felt a tad premature.
For a start, the 2024-25 League One season is only four games old — including that one. Cast your mind back one year to the same point in the Welsh club’s EFL return after 15 seasons in non-League and Phil Parkinson’s side were 15th out of 24 sides in League Two after conceding a whopping 13 goals in their first four fixtures and winning just one of them — yet still went on to clinch automatic promotion with two weeks to spare.
Nevertheless, despite Wrexham fans knowing from recent experience just why reading too much into the opening 360 minutes of a league campaign can be a mistake, their jubilant mood as Peterborough were beaten 2-0 was perhaps understandable.
After a tough-looking welcome back to League One, after 19 years away, that has included trips to the clubs who finished third (Bolton Wanderers) and fourth (Peterborough) in the third tier last season, Wrexham are unbeaten with 10 points from a possible 12. Only fellow newcomers Stockport County’s superior goal difference (+7 to their +6) is keeping Parkinson’s men out of first place.
Better still, a transfer window that brought eight new faces to the SToK Cae Ras, as the Racecourse Ground is currently known as part of a sponsorship deal, has left the Wrexham manager with enviable strength in depth. Ollie Rathbone and Dan Scarr, both promotion winners at this level previously, are yet to start a game for the north Wales side since joining in the summer, such is the wealth of options available.
In fact, only George Dobson and Sebastian Revan among those new faces have started in the league, and the latter just the once when brought in at right wing-back to quell the threat of reported £800,000 summer signing Szabolcs Schon in a goalless draw away to Bolton, who got to last season’s League One play-off final.
Their time will come, though. The demands of a 46-game league season will see to that. And that’s when the true value of a window that closed on Friday — with striker Modou Faal, from West Bromwich Albion of the second-tier Championship, being the final addition — will surely be felt.
For now, Dobson is the only new face on which to judge that summer work — and what a fine addition he’s proving to be.
On Saturday, the 26-year-old free-agent signing from fellow League One side Charlton Athletic anchored the midfield against a home team who break at speed and with plenty of intent. Dobson proved Peterborough’s equal throughout, even finding time to pop up in the home penalty area and steer Elliot Lee’s pass into Marriott’s path for that opening goal on 29 minutes.
His ability to influence a game is perhaps best illustrated by the passing map below.
No wonder Parkinson, who worked so tirelessly alongside director Shaun Harvey on recruitment this summer, is so happy with the squad’s make-up.
“Transfer windows are always difficult,” Parkinson says. “Some you get, some you miss out on. But I’ve been pleased with the people we’ve brought into the building to carry on this Wrexham story. The existing lads who have got the shirts are doing great. But, when the games come thick and fast in the weeks to come, we’ll make changes.
“Look at Ollie Rathbone today. I thought he was outstanding (after coming off the bench). We have got really good players to step in.”
The Athletic reflects on a busy transfer window for Wrexham…
Was this window a success or a failure? A huge success, even if Wrexham didn’t land all their major targets, with John McAtee (signed by Bolton for £1.2million) and Michael Smith (retained by Sheffield Wednesday of the Championship) among the ones who got away. Every position now has genuine competition, as opposed to just cover.
The age profile dial has also shifted, with half of the eight signings being 23 or younger and Scarr the oldest at 29. Two promotions in as many years show the value of Wrexham prioritising experience when trying to escape non-League. Had Smith, a proven striker at third-tier level with Swindon Town, Rotherham United and Wednesday, signed at the age of 32 (33 next month), chances are he’d also have been a success in Wrexham colours. But, the time was right to refresh the age range, with most of those released by the club this summer being 30 or above.
How much did they spend and how much did they bring in? It’s difficult to say exactly in this era of undisclosed fees but reliable sources suggest the total outlay was not too far short of £2million, with Faal and Rathbone accounting for slightly less than half of that club record sum. Landing Scarr, Lewis Brunt and Revan, the latter from Aston Villa of the Premier League, for low-six-figures fees is outstanding value and testament to Wrexham’s negotiating skills. Nothing was recouped in sales though, with all departures being either on loan or released.
Who seems like the standout signing? As mentioned above, Dobson looked a class addition against Peterborough. Always able to find space in even the most congested area, the holding midfielder offers a constant out-ball to team-mates in trouble. He also uses the ball intelligently and at a good tempo, ensuring Wrexham are on the front foot. In time, Revan could be the 2024 summer signing we’re all talking about, while Brunt, Scarr and Rathbone will be pushing for increased roles over the next few weeks. But, for now, Dobson is the man.
Who could be the surprise package? Faal is a fascinating addition. Still quite raw, having played just once for West Brom in the league with most of his senior football coming on loan at League Two level and below, he’s clearly a signing with potential. He will have to wait for his chance but if the 21-year-old, an unused substitute at London Road on Saturday, develops in the way Wrexham hope, Faal could prove a big signing in time.
Faal could prove to be a big signing for Wrexham further down the line (Adam Fradgley/Getty Images)
Will any of their exits hurt them? All those who left would have struggled for game time this season if they’d stayed.
Are there still any obvious gaps in the team? A slight concern remains up front, despite a host of created chances and two goals against Peterborough. Ollie Palmer has started the season brilliantly, while Steven Fletcher has caused his customary problems from the bench. But, as Faal gets used to life in Wrexham, can both men — 32 and 37 respectively — cope with the demands of a Saturday-Tuesday-Saturday schedule once autumn kicks in? They will simply have to, as both Paul Mullin and Marriott (another who has started the campaign very well) benefit from having a partner who takes the physical knocks and creates space to exploit. It’s why Parkinson pushed hard for experienced 6ft 3in (191cm) striker Smith only to be rebuffed by Wednesday.
What are they planning for January? After such a busy summer window, the hope is that only slight tweaks for injuries and so on will be needed in the mid-season one.
What is their strongest XI now the window has shut? A tough pick, not least because the suspicion is that the best XI could look quite different come November/December, with Revan and Faal likely to be pushing hard by then, along with Scarr in the centre of defence, while Rathbone will hope to have been given a lengthy run in one position. For now, though, we’ll go (3-5-2): Arthur Okonkwo; Max Cleworth, Eoghan O’Connell, Tom O’Connor; Ryan Barnett, Andy Cannon, Dobson, Lee, James McClean; Palmer, Mullin.
Players in: Okonkwo (Arsenal), Lewis Brunt (Leicester City, undiscl), Dobson (Charlton, free), Callum Burton (Plymouth Argyle, free), Revan (Aston Villa, undiscl), Ollie Rathbone (Rotherham United, undiscl), Faal (West Brom, £500,000).
Players out: Luke McNicholas (Rochdale, loan), Jordan Davies (Grimsby Town, loan), Jake Bickerstaff (Altrincham, loan), Sam Dalby (Dundee United, loan), Billy Waters (FC Halifax Town, loan), Aaron Hayden (Carlisle United), Jordan Tunnicliffe (Solihull Moors), Luke Young (Cheltenham Town), Ben Tozer (Forest Green Rovers), Callum McFadzean (unattached), Rob Lainton (unattached).
(Top photo: Barrington Coombs/PA Images via Getty Images)
