A FOND FAREWELL
Over the next fortnight we’ll pay a daily tribute to one of the players who are leaving Wrexham AFC this month.

The release of Abbie Iddenden was expected, as she didn’t feature in the second half of the season, but anyone who watched her stellar first season with Wrexham won’t help but be surprised that such a technical player hasn’t been able to find a place in brave new Wrexham.

In winning the Player of the Season award in her first year at the club, Iddenden showed her quality, and it’s a little surprising that she didn’t become a key player in the new-look Wrexham side. Partnered with Ava Suckley up front, their superb partnership helped steer us dramatically into the top half in the last match of Phase One, and showcased Iddenden’s undoubted talents.

Outstanding with her back to goal, she was extremely adept at holding the ball up, resisting pressure and showcasing her technical skills. She manipulated the ball beautifully, can turn either way, and has an awareness of where players are when they move off her. Early on last season the problem was finishing: she regularly got into great positions but finished poorly. That certainly wasn’t the case as the season went on and she started to stack up some impressive numbers.

An assist in each of her first two starts was promising, but she didn’t score in her first 5 games, a run which ended when she came on ten minutes into the second half at Llanystumdwy and helped herself to two goals as well as another two assists. That kick-started a four game scoring run and although a mid-season lull coincided with an injury picked up at TNS, she regained her form in time to make a massive contribution to that remarkable run of seven wins which propelled us into the top half for Phase Two with six goals and six assists. She continued to contribute as results tailed off at the end of the season, with six goals in the last seven including scoring in the Welsh Cup final.

There were iconic moments. I’ve said it a million times: her hat trick against Cardiff City, in securing our first home victory over the Bluebirds, was the best I’ve seen by any Wrexham player, male or female. A long distance lob on the run, a sharp first time finish from the edge of the box and a long range drive. Magnificent.

She’d already scored the winner as we beat Cardiff for the first time, a close range finish celebrated in the grand manner: feet planted wide apart as she stretched to finish, she stood, arms aloft like the Colossus of Rhodes!. An epic visual moment, a massive moment in the progression of the club.

Things weren’t the same in 2025-26. Perhaps it was simply a case of the new shape deployed by Sugarman being better suited to a mobile striker who stretched defences with lateral runs to create space for Katie Barker to run into rather than a central point who could pin centre backs. Certainly, once Rosie Hughes got up to speed in that role, Iddenden’s opportunities were limited. Her last league start came in November; her last league game was as early as December. Her last match for us was the Welsh Cup tie against Penybont, just before Christmas.

Still, mostly bolstered by her figures from the previous season, she is equal top assist maker in Wrexham’s history. Her goalscoring and goal involvements stats stack up well too.

It was sad to see her time at the club come to an end like it did, but hopefully she’ll find a team that will build around her considerable ability and bounce back emphatically.