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United Kingdom The story of Wrexham's epic 3-2 win over Notts County – told by ...
An afternoon that showcased the very best non-League football has to offer ended with Rob McElhenney kissing Ben Foster fully on the lips as his Wrexham co-owner Ryan Reynolds dubbed the former England goalkeeper “a double-handsome bastard”.
Just a typical day in the life of this Welsh city since the arrival of Hollywood glitz via one of football’s most unlikely takeovers, as a match dubbed the biggest in the history of the fifth-tier National League lived up to its billing.
The two clubs kicked off on 100 points apiece for the season in their neck-and-neck battle for the sole automatic promotion place up to League Two of the EFL and Wrexham prevailed over Notts County… in the end. But only after a pulsating end-to-end contest that proved as unpredictable as the early spring weather as the Racecourse Ground went from blazing sunshine to torrential rain and back again.
The Athletic tells the story of a match that was truly one for the ages, with the help of managers Phil Parkinson and Luke Williams, plus Wrexham’s winning goalscorer Elliot Lee and last-gasp hero Foster. Co-chairman Reynolds also has his say, along with Shaun Harvey, advisor to the Welsh club’s owners, and John Bostock, scorer of the goal that had given the visitors a 1-0 half-time lead.
3.30pm. A cagey first half is yet to spark into life. Both clubs have had their moments but neither goalkeeper has had to make a save.
Parkinson: “On Sunday in training, we’d worked on exploiting their high back line. Sometimes in the first half we didn’t quite time our runs right, but I did think the linesman was, shall we say, eager with his flag.”
3.49pm. Notts are awarded a free kick in a promising position on the edge of the penalty area. Bostock stands over the ball.
Bostock: “It was a big, big, big wall. Everyone in it must have been 6ft 3in (191cm) tall or more. But I knew if I got the ball up and over it, it would have a chance. As soon as it left my foot, it felt as though it was going in.
“The emotion in that moment was incredible. It had been a while since I’d last scored (for Lens, then in the French second division, way back in September 2016).”
Half-time. Notts lead 1-0. The two managers get to work in their respective dressing rooms.
Williams: “I told the players to maintain what they had been doing, to keep applying pressure. There is no other way to play against Wrexham, you cannot sit back. Trying to hold onto something is just impossible. We had to keep pushing. But we also had to remain calm.”
Parkinson: “The key was not being affected by the goal going in. We had to make sure we didn’t get carried away with the emotion of the occasion. That can sometimes happen in games like this.”
Bostock: “We felt we were in control of the game — we’d been the better team. But we knew Wrexham would come again. It is a special atmosphere here.”
4.11pm. Ryan Barnett releases James Jones down Wrexham’s right flank. He looks up and drills in a low cross to Paul Mullin, who equalises with a typically clinical finish.
Harvey: “We’d been talking in the lounge at half-time about the need to score early. Just to give us some momentum. So, when Paul Mullin does what Paul Mullin does best with that wonderful finish, everyone is up celebrating.
“I’m stood with Rob and Ryan just in front of me. You could feel the belief as soon as the equaliser went in; as if everyone sensed this was a game where, suddenly, there was only going to be one winner. That’s not disrespectful to Notts County, it’s just the feeling we had.”
Foster: “He (Mullin) is like a non-League Jamie Vardy. Has he been called that before? If not, he should be. He never stops running. He has Duracell batteries inside him. Just gets on with his job, too. Sometimes, strikers can be a bit big-time, a bit ego. But he’s the opposite.”
4.32pm. Wrexham take the lead for the first time after Mullin scampers onto a pass down Notts’ left flank. He rolls in a low cross which Jacob Mendy, arriving late at the back post, converts.
Parkinson: “I’d had a good chat with Jacob the day before the game. We both know he’s not been at his best for one or two reasons. I told him these were the sort of games we signed him for because his pace and power can make all the difference. Jacob is very difficult for even the best players to get past.
“I felt he really stepped up against probably the most dangerous wing-back in the division (Notts’ Aaron Nemane). To get the goal on top of that made it some performance from Jacob.”
4.38pm. Moments after Foster makes a stunning save to deny Sam Austin, the home defence falls asleep to allow Kyle Cameron to arrive unmarked and head Notts level.
Foster: “Once we go 2-1 up, I’m thinking, ‘C’mon, lads, there’s 20 minutes left — we can do this’. Then we conceded such a poor goal by not picking up at the far post.”
Harvey: “All of a sudden, everyone’s looking at each other as if to say, ‘What just happened?’. You could hear a pin drop at that stage. Just lots of people shaking their heads. I won’t say ‘in disbelief’. Not when you’re playing a team as good as Notts County, who have 100 points on the board, but it was disappointing.
“I couldn’t get the Grimsby match last season (when Wrexham lost 5-4 here in the promotion play-offs semi-finals) out of my mind at this stage. There were goals flying in left, right and centre that day and this was starting to feel like that.”
4.32pm. Eoghan O’Connell shows great awareness to chip the ball down the right and then race forward to collect it himself. His cross strikes a Notts leg and falls to Mullin. He tees up Lee, who strokes the ball into the net.
Lee: “I’ve played with a lot of good strikers in my career but Mulls is probably the best of the lot.
“As the season has gone on, we’ve developed more and more of a connection. We probably look for each other first before anyone else. We always play one-twos, meaning my stats probably say I pass to him the most and I’d imagine he’ll be the same. He’s incredible to play with and you saw that for the goal. He laid the ball off perfectly. I’ve had some great feelings at this club but that topped the lot.”
Williams: “We were disappointed with the third goal because we made the first contact in the box. We needed to clear the ball.”
5pm. The moment nobody who was inside the Racecourse on Easter Monday 2023 will forget, as referee Scott Tallis throws Notts a 95th-minute lifeline by pointing to the penalty spot.
Parkinson: “A harsh decision and a big call at that stage of the game. As you can imagine, I wasn’t best pleased with the decision.”
Lee: “The thing is, not many in the stadium seemed to notice what was going on. The header had been cleared out to Barney (Barnett), our right wing-back. I looked straight at the referee and he wasn’t following the ball. I knew then he was going to give the penalty.”
Williams: “I left it to the players to decide who took it (with Notts’ regular penalty taker Ruben Rodrigues having been substituted). With the tension of an away game against Wrexham, both teams on 100 points, I was happy with whoever they decided.
“Cedwyn (Scott) immediately wanted to take the penalty. I was fine with that because I would always back Cedwyn with the quality of strike he has.”
Lee: “As soon as the penalty was given, I’m thinking about Sheffield United and the FA Cup tie here (in January, when the promotion-chasing Championship side made it 3-3 in stoppage time, then won the replay). I’m thinking, ‘It can’t happen again, surely’. This time, though, I did think we still had a chance. That’s what having Ben Foster in goal does to you.”
GO DEEPER
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Parkinson: “Ben has an aura, a huge presence about him. Maybe that played on the young lad’s mind as he stepped up.”
Foster: “As a goalie, you can’t really lose in a situation like that. There is a lot of pressure on the taker. A huge amount. To be perfectly honest, he probably gave away where he was going to put it. Just a little bit, but enough.
“All the data said he’d go to my left, but I went with my intuition. Basically, he put the ball down at a certain angle. His run-up was a little bit closed off. (So) There were only two places he could put it — down the middle or to my right. To open his hips up and put it to the other side, no one is going to try that in the 95th minute. You are just not doing that. Far too much pressure in that situation. So I went to my right and my top hand came over to push it away.”
Parkinson: “Cometh the hour, cometh the man. What a save. You have top-class penalty saves and that was right up there.”
Foster: “That adrenaline buzz was incredible. In fact, it’s giving me goosebumps now. As good as it gets in football. I’ve never been one to celebrate saves. In fact, I’ve called out goalies for doing that in the past — to me, it’s a bit of a douchebag thing to do — but I couldn’t help myself with this save, especially when all the lads started running up to me. That feeling, I’ve only had something like that maybe twice in my career.”
5.02pm. The final whistle goes to spark joyous scenes around the Racecourse, as Wrexham return to the top of the table. This feels like a definitive moment in the most relentless title race non-League football has known, with the north Wales club now three points clear of Notts with a game in hand and (for them) four to play.
Reynolds: “My voice is shot, I have no voice left. The Football League is within touching distance but those chickens are not being counted just yet. We just have to take it game by game.”
Bostock: “We have to keep our heads up, we have to keep going. Has the title gone? Possibly. But, actually, football is full of twists and turns.”
Parkinson: “We wouldn’t swap this position with anyone. It was a great day for us, made that bit more special by the owners being here and the atmosphere created in the ground. But tomorrow morning, it’s back to work. This isn’t over until it is mathematically ours.”
Williams: “The dressing room is very flat, very disappointed. But we have more football ahead of us (a second promotion place is available via play-offs involving the teams finishing second to seventh) and we are unlikely to face a team as strong as Wrexham.”
5.30pm. The home dressing room is jubilant as owners Reynolds and McElhenney enter to congratulate the team on an epic win.
Reynolds: “Aside from the birth of my kids, this day was up there for me, emotionally. Everything about this sport and the way the sport is handled here, with the pyramid system — promotion and relegation — that creates stakes like nothing else.”
Foster: “The owners came in afterwards and they were buzzing. I got a kiss on the lips from Rob. Fully on the lips. And Ryan called me a ‘double-handsome bastard’. I’ll take that all day long from someone like Ryan, who is so handsome himself.
“They were over the moon. To be honest, they are probably like the rest of us, worn out and tired. But it’s great to see how much it means to Rob and Ryan. I told them, ‘Listen, you should end the (Welcome to Wrexham) documentary now, as you’ll never get a better moment than what has just happened’.
“(That was) The best game of football I’m pretty sure they’ll ever go to.”
More reading on Wrexham:(Top graphic – photos: Getty Images; design: John Bradford)
