Oppositions View: Wrexham AFC

Last updated : 09 August 2005 By Rob Davies
What are your hopes and aims for Wrexham this season?

Our aim this season is to bounce straight back up into League One - be that through one of the three automatic places or through the play-offs. We didn't deserve to go down last season, and shouldn't be in League Two. Our hopes will be that Alex Hamilton stops messing the fans, players, staff and potential buyers about and finally sells up and doesn't come anywhere near Wrexham and Wrexham AFC again.

Just how important do you feel it was to start the season with a win, especially against Boston, who have been tipped for promotion in certain sections?

Juan Ugarte - Notable departure
Vitally important. We lost many of our key players in the summer...Ugarte, Edwards, Llewellyn, Morgan all moved on, while we dumped some as well. The gaffer (Denis Smith) brought in a number of new recruits (all signed on frees as we have no money), they've played several pre-season matches and been hot and cold at times as they gain fitness.

Getting off to a winning start, especially against Boston and at home (our home form was abysmal last season) will be a massive morale booster for the players, staff and fans. We're confident we have a squad capable of beating most teams in League Two, we just need to go out there and do it.

Do you feel you warrant being one of the bookies favourites for
promotion this campaign?


Absolutely. While pundits and rival fans have been doubtful, we have a good squad. Lee Roche - a former Man Utd trainee is with us, Mike Ingham who has played in the Championship with Sunderland. We have two young strikers in Jon Walters formerly of Hull and Lee McEvilly - both proven goalscorers. We had a pretty good pre-season in my opinion, scoring a lot of goals and at times looking like a team that been together for more than a few weeks.

Give us some thoughts on your current playing squad. Watch out for McEvilly and Walters. Both have looked impressive in pre-season and as mentioned earlier, both can score goals - from open play and free-kicks around the box

Which players from the squad do you expect to make an impact on
League Two this year?

Ingham in goal. He's made a couple errors against Man Utd and Liverpool in pre-season, but that could just be nerves against huge opposition. He's good enough to play at least Championship level, and he will be an asset to the club. McEvilly and Walters as mentioned, I expect at 20+ goals from them to fire us to at least the play offs.

Also watch out for Wales U21 international Mark Jones in the midfield. He was in and out of the team last year and impressed when he played, but having opted to stay at the Racecourse this year rather than jump ship, we can expect to see more of him - and of course, he's already got his first goal against Boston.

What do you make of the new signings Dennis Smith has brought in
over the summer?

Considering our situation, no money, can only have 20 pro players, I'm impressed - Walters, McEvilly, Roche, Bayliss, Ingham could all play (and have played) higher than league two yet the gaffer has persuaded them to drop down here. The squad has potential - last season we were hoping for the play-offs in League One before injury and a 10-point penalty put a stop to that. We have a great bunch of youngsters coming through, and Denis has brought in experienced players who can do the job.

Smith: Knight him!
Do you believe you currently have the right manager at the club?

Without a doubt, I don't know a fan who could say Denis shouldn't be in charge. He's out of contract with the club, because we can't offer him a new one as we're still in administration, but he's decided he wants to stay with the club. He's been wheeling and dealing in the free transfer market, and has made himself a Racecourse legend in recent seasons. He led us to our first major English trophy - LDV Vans - against all the odds last season, and somehow managed to keep himself, staff and players motivated through all of the hard times we face.

Some fans suggest he should be honoured by the Queen for his work at Wrexham. Denis Smith leaving Wrexham in the next few years, will be disastrous for the club!

Who is your tip for the League Two title?

To be honest, there are a number of teams who could win it. Naturally I'd like to see ourselves win it. The teams that came close to promotion last season should be there abouts again and you can't rule out one of the other three relegated teams from last year winning it. But the league I believe is tight, and someone good go on an amazing run from nowhere, so I don't think I could pin it down really.

Do you have any pre-conceptions/opinions about Notts County?

I'll be hoping
Pilkington isn't as hot as he was on Saturday against Torquay, from what I've seen he was amazing between the posts. A good result for you against Torquay on Saturday, they were posibbly unlucky to go down last season, and I'm expectant that they'd be aiming for a play-off spot this season.

How many travelling supporters should we expect tomorrow evening?

There may be a couple hundred turn up. You might have got that last season, we're just starting to see whether the loyal fans are still going to turn up this season home and away. Our home attendance on Saturday was in line with our average last season, so you could expect anywhere between 50 and 400 (I could be wrong, but an away midweek game sandwiched between two Saturday games could also keep supporters away, with a trip to Northampton on Saturday.

Finally, score prediction for the game?

I think it will be a close game, but Wrexham will take a 2-1.


Alex is editor of NCM's sister site, Wrexham MAD. To visit, click here.