Wrexham took a heavy defeat at the hands of Sporting JAX last weekend – there’s no other way to put it. Don’t panic, though, everything is still well on track.

A five-goal defeat is never easy to swallow, even in a friendly. When you’ve established a relentless winning habit, it’s also a downright shock. However, there was a lot we can take from the game, especially as the quality of the opposition needs to be borne in mind.

The Floridian side were simply outstanding. We won’t face a side anywhere near as good as that this season, so being beaten by them is certainly no disgrace. Indeed, I’d argue that a 5-0 loss to them is a decent result. After we let in three goals in the opening 20 minutes, it looked like it could get very messy indeed.

However, we rallied and defended well. Considering the quality Sporting JAX had on and off the ball, we didn’t really concede as many chances as we would have done if we hadn’t stood firm. It’s not as if they eased off either: their pace was relentless, urged on by Stacey Balaam, their admirable coach. There was no diminution of quality or intensity from them when they started to rotate their side with roll-on roll-off subs in the second half.

It also has to be remembered that a couple of the goals we conceded were uncharacteristically soft, typically of pre-season rustiness. If we’d avoided those self-inflicted injuries we would have stayed in the game for longer.

I haven’t enjoyed the hydration breaks at the World Cup, but after this match, I’m a convert! The coaching staff clearly put the first half hiatus to good use, getting amongst the players and reasserting some basic principles of our gameplan, because after the pause we did well without the ball. We got to half time without conceding again, and while Lucy Farrell made a couple of good stretching saves, those shots came from outside the box.

It was fast decision-making, passing and movement which undid us: I actually thought our centre backs played well. Jodie Bartle was up for the challenge physically despite coming back from an injury; Phoebe Davies made some important interventions on the edge of the box; and Sarah Harvey was terrific. She showed excellent recovery speed and combativity, making a number of key challenges. In the second half, Lydia Sallaway impressed, looking composed on the ball and switched on to dangerous situations as they developed, and Nat Clark offered a typical solidity in the heart of the defensive unit.

It became difficult when we got the ball because Sporting were so disciplined. The distances between them were excellent and they pressed with terrific intensity when triggered. It was extremely difficult to play through the middle of the pitch as their structure was so good. It was instructive to see this, but you have to bear in mind that no Adran Premier side will be able to approach those levels. A number of times we were presented with situations where, to progress the ball, we needed to thread the ball through a narrow gap. Sides aren’t able to block the passing channels like that in the Welsh league often, and when they do it’s not something they can sustain. It all made it extremely difficult to get forward on the transition, and when we did our forwards were isolated.

The fact that we weren’t able to support the striker is instructive though. At all times we looked to combat Sporting’s play by engaging with them outside the box, and we never looked to withdraw the striker and park the bus. The obvious contrast is with Thomas Tuchel’s England against Argentina the night before. In an approach described by The Athletic as “craven” they pulled everyone back into the penalty are after going ahead. It was an oddly retrograde step to take considering they’d been the better side until that point, and their complete abdication of ambition came back to bite them. Obviously, I’m not saying you aren’t allowed to sit on a lead, but their complete withdrawal into a passive, slavish defence of the penalty area was extreme.

We never fell into that trap. We looked to be proactive and press in midfield, and our defence didn’t retreat until it had to. This was perfectly illustrated by a passage of play with around 20 minutes left. Sporting’s passing and movement was dazzling as, for 20 seconds, they popped the ball around 25 yards out, trying to find a weak spot to exploit. It was fantastic to watch, and excellent technically, but ultimately, we stood form and they couldn’t find a way into the box. Hats off to our players and coaching staff for restricting them so keenly. At no point did we drift into the bad habits exhibited the night before, when a desperate desire to clog up the box meant nobody took the responsibility to close down Enzo Fernandez when he struck his equaliser. In those situations, Wrexham’s players knew their jobs and stepped out to deny the opportunity.

It was extremely difficult to get up the pitch, as Sporting’s players were so quick to spot and close passing lanes. It was fascinating to watch Faye Knox battle for space in midfield: she is so talented, and it was a challenge for her to back in and try to turn tightly-marking opponents who did their job so much better than their equivalents will when we play domestic matches. Often the match-changing moments she delivers regularly just weren’t possible because Sporting wouldn’t allow them to happen, but she persevered, adapted, and retained the ball really well, even if you could see her frustration at the challenge she faced. She often manufactured situations which, in the Adran Premier, would lead to a chance.

We had to be inch-perfect with the ball, both in terms of accuracy and pace, or a Sporting player was there to intercept. Yet we did manage some moments of success and it must be remembered that we were up against a well-paid fully professional team from the top tier of one of the giants of women’s football.

Being stretched by a team from another level can be chastening, but it can also be hugely beneficial. It makes me think of the crazy tale of Muhammad Ali training underwater. He told a journalist that he was so quick because he went to a local swimming pool early each morning and sparred in the deep end. If he could throw punches and move his feet quickly in water, then naturally he’d be much faster in the air.

Intrigued, the journo followed up the tale and landed himself an exclusive. He had to find a photographer and what was then highly sophisticated underwater equipment to capture Ali’s routine, but the pictures which emerged were iconic.

Of course, it was all nonsense, although it appears the reporter wasn’t in on the scam. Obviously, Ali didn’t train underwater: closed circuit sales of the bout were dragging and Ali came up with the remarkable idea to grab headlines and encourage people to pay to watch the fight. He held his breath as long as he could so the pictures could be taken, and was exhausted after the journalists left!

The reason that tale comes to mind is that, while it is pure fiction, the idea underpinning it is valid. If you test yourself against someone who is better and don’t cave in, you will improve. Wrexham certainly didn’t cave in: we took the brave option and were rewarded by having moments of success and restricting Sporting’s scoring. Those moments can sustain us: the need to maintain defensive discipline as a unit and stick to our principles of play; the points where punchy passing allowed progress; times when players were able to resist the ferocious press.

We shouldn’t be disappointed that we let in five; we should be pleased that our defensive unit restricted such a fine team for prolonged periods. I stand by my assertion that we’ll face no opposition near that standard next season, but need to clarify one point: I’m including the Champions League qualifying stages. A 5-0 loss could end up being the springboard to something wonderful.