Phil Parkinson, the manager of Wrexham, enjoys the rivalry with Stockport and discusses how Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney helped the Red Dragons match their opponent.
Wrexham face Stockport in League Two
Both sides recently promoted back to the EFL
Parkinson admits rivalries are good to have
WHAT HAPPENED? The two sides are set to face off in League Two this afternoon, with Wrexham currently unbeaten ever since their opening-day defeat to MK Dons. They could climb to the top of the table with victory at Edgeley Park, with a sell-out crowd expected. It’s the first time the clubs have done battle since the 2021-22 campaign, when Stockport pipped the Wrexham to promotion at the end of Ryan Reynolds’ and Rob McElhenney’s first full season as owners of the club.
WHAT HE SAID: “It is good to have rivalries,” Parkinson told The Leader in the build-up to the game. “We know our squad wasn’t good enough that season leading into January. We then made improvements and we had a real go at it, we gave everything we could, but Stockport probably had a little bit more strength in depth at the time. We got to the summer and reviewed how we could improve it again with the staff and owners and then we got promotion. We are continually evolving as a team, not just bringing new
players in but working with the ones we have got to keep getting better, and we have got to keep striving for that.”
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Much of Wrexham’s improvement has been bankrolled by their Hollywood owners, although there are a number of players who have been with the club throughout its journey back to the Football League after a 15-year absence.
Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR WREXHAM: With aspirations of yet another promotion this season, Wrexham bolstered their squad in the summer once more, with veteran forward and former Scotland international Steven Fletcher having joined the fourth-tier outfit.
