Stoke City

4th November 2000: Nationwide League Division Two

No Repeat Comeback for Brave Reds

Despite a stirring second half performance which drew a standing ovation from the crowd and was described by Brian Flynn as the best they have played at home this season, Wrexham suffered another home defeat, their sixth in nine games at The Racecourse, as their makeshift defence was exposed once more.

No one could fault the heart of the team, and in the second half they hammered a strong Stoke side whose tactical changes were clearly made in fear rather than calculation, but the equaliser they deserved just would not come, and they were left to reflect on a first half in which their performance had initially been rather meek.

After a decent start, Wrexham soon ceded the initiative to a Stoke side whose passing and movement, especially from Stefan Thordarson and Bjarni Gudjonsson on the flanks, began to pick holes in the home team’s rearguard. Thordarson forced Kevin Dearden into tipping a swerving cross over the bar as the pressure mounted and his Icelandic compatriot, Rikmadur Dadason, nearly capped his goalscoring debut in midweek with a shot on the turn which whistled wide of the left post. The breakthrough had an air of inevitability about it, and it was again created by Thordarson; his free kick from the left picked out Peter Thorne in space at the far post and he made no mistake with a good downward header, as one would expect when last season’s Second Division top scorer is allowed that sort of time to pick his spot.

Wrexham responded well, with Craig Faulconbridge and Chris Killen again knitting together well up front and Edwards enjoying a good tussle with Tony Dorigo. Twice Faulconbridge got round the back of the visiting defence and his pull-backs were just beyond Killen, before a dramatic spell of action provided what, with hindsight, was the decisive moment of the match. A high speed interchange of passes ended with Killen bursting through the centre, his progress halted by a crude foul from Nicky Mohan. Despite fevered calls from the crowd and Darren Ferguson for a red card, the referee delivered a booking, which was probably the right decision as Brynjar Gunnarsson and Dorigo were in fairly close attendance, although the thought of an expulsion must have crossed his mind. Ferguson tried a trademark quick shot from the free kick, but Muggleton was alert enough to save easily, and within moments the Wrexham fightback was dealt a heavy blow as City won a penalty. Gudjonsson, whose father is Stoke boss Gudjon Thordarson, was giving Emad Bouanane a torrid time down the right, and when he burst into the box and got behind the French full back the despairing defender tugged at his sleeve and the winger went down to claim a penalty which, despite a great deal of dissent from the crowd, was probably justified. Thordarson stepped up and scored confidently from the spot.

Wrexham recovered their composure quickly and tried to claw their way back before the break, Killen going desperately close when his header from Ferguson’s corner was cleared off the line by Gunnarsson. The centre back was also subject to an optimistic penalty shout for handball, but the ball clearly struck his chest and Roy Pearson, who handled the game extremely well, was not about to be fooled.

Wrexham started the second half purposefully, with Stoke clearly happy to dig in and defend their lead. Ferguson sold a brilliant dummy to fool Petty on the left side of the box, but as he latched onto the ball after allowing it to roll through his legs, he was forced to shoot with his weaker right foot and could not steer it around Muggleton. As the pressure and the decibels increased, Wrexham drew closer and closer to the goal that would pull them back into the match. Having been given a thorough examination of his defensive capabilities in the first half, Bouanane was able to concentrate on his strengths in the second, bursting forward to good effect, and he nearly notched his first goal for the club when he took an exquisite return pass from Paul Barrett but, as Muggleton bore down on him, could only lift the ball onto the top of the bar. Moments later, with their tails still up, Wrexham went agonisingly close again, Killen meeting a great near post cross by Edwards with a firm close range header which deflected over off Mohan.

In coming forward so adventurously, Wrexham were bound to leave gaps at the back, but Stoke rarely threatened to exploit them as they sat deep and prayed for the final whistle, defender Thomas replacing Thordarson, City’s most creative player by a distance, being a clear statement of intent as City sat on their lead. They did manage one menacing break when Kavanagh raced clear on goal but his touch was too heavy, allowing Dearden to race out and smother the ball, and immediately Wrexham carved out an identical chance, Gunnarsson doing well to recover and force Killen to shoot wide. The breakthrough had to come, and it was the presence of Killen which provided it, winning a penalty for a tug on his shirt as he rose to head on goal, Ferguson converting the kick with typical aplomb.

Soon Hector Sam was thrown on to the delight of the crowd, and he nearly made an immediate impact when he drew a yellow card from Gunnarsson as he raced towards goal, Ferguson floating the free kick over the wall for Muggleton to tip behind superbly. Sam went close himself with a turn and shot which went narrowly over, and, after more good work by Edwards, Ferguson had yet another chance to add to his penalty, but once more it fell on his right foot and lacked direction.

With a third Stoke change replacing a striker with a defensive midfielder and the referee adding five extra minutes on after a clash of heads between Killen and Mohan, the game ended in a frenzy of Wrexham attacks as the night drew in, Faulconbridge going desperately close when his glancing header from a corner was hacked off the line by Dorigo, but Stoke held on for a victory which, on the basis of the last hour of the match, they hardly deserved.

WREXHAM (4-3-3): Dearden; Roche, McGregor, Mardon, Bouanane; Chalk, Ferguson (c), Barrett; Edwards, Faulconbridge, Killen (Sam, 70). UNUSED SUBS: Ridler, Owen, Rogers, Gibson.

STOKE CITY (4-4-2): Muggleton; Petty, Gunnarsson, Mohan, Dorigo; Gudjonsson, Kavanagh (c), O’Connor, Thordarson (Thomas, 58); Dadason (Lightbourne, 70), Thorne (Risom, 86). UNUSED SUBS: Kristinsson, Clarke.

Referee: Roy Pearson (Peterlee)

Bookings:
	Wrexham	Stoke City
	–	Mohan (foul on Killen, 23)
		Kavanagh (foul on Ferguson, 64)
		Gunnarsson (foul on Sam, 77)

Attendance: 6,447

Reaction: Brian Flynn

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