Why Wrexham’s long wait for the Football League may soon be over
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December could hardly have gone better for Wrexham fans. Despite the shock departure of boss Sam Ricketts to rivals Shrewsbury Town, the Dragons have gone from strength to strength.
Now a point off the National League summit with a game in hand on their fellow challengers, the club’s decade in the wilderness could soon be over. Here’s why…
Rock-solid backline continuing to improve
The North Wales outfit have been suitably Scrooge-like at the back over the Christmas period. Graham Barrow’s side have shipped a single goal in their last five games, and that was a consolation strike in the 5-1 mauling of Salford City.
At centre-half, the experienced pair of Jake Lawlor and captain Shaun Pearson have been almost impossible to break down.
Meanwhile, at full-back both James Jennings and Mark Carrington are reliable performers who can also trouble the opposition coming forward.
Ricketts may have built the unit, but they’ve looked even sturdier under assistant-turned-boss Barrow. The recent 0-0 draw at Aldershot Town saw Dragons keeper Rob Lainton facing just two shots on target!
Goals coming from across the pitch
While the men from the Racecourse Ground haven’t galloped to the top of the goalscoring charts, the situation coming forward is actually quite promising.
For Salford, Adam Rooney’s current run of no goals in four games is in danger of single handedly derailing their title race. And fellow title hopefuls Fylde are heavily reliant on Danny Rowe.
But the situation is rather different for Wrexham. Their last eight league goals have been netted by eight different scorers.
With 15 players finding the net for the Dragons in the National League, they’re not overly hampered by the odd injury or player in need of a rest.
Title rivals beginning to falter
Big-money Salford City were there to be shot at from the beginning, but it’s only in recent weeks that sides have worked out how to gun them down.
After seemingly endless success in recent seasons, Graham Alexander’s new-boys are struggling to recover from setbacks. They’ve now lost four on the spin, and been leapfrogged by AFC Fylde.
Leyton Orient remain top of the table by a point, but one point from three away trips to sides outside the top 10 is real cause for concern for Justin Edinburgh and co.
As for early season pace-setters Harrogate Town, they appear to have been little more than an unlikely flash in the pan. Two wins in seven games tells its own story.
The Odds
Next up is a trip to Moor Lane, to face Salford again. Wrexham are 27/10 to do the double over the Ammies, while Barrow’s clean-sheet specialists are 11/2to Win to Nil.
As it stands, the North Wales club are 9/2 to win the National League.
