Wrexham closed the gap to the Championship playoff spots with a 2-1 victory over Preston at the Stok Cae Ras.
Club record signing Nathan Broadhead opened the scoring in the 28th minute with a header, and substitute Ollie Rathbone extended their lead with a goal 12 minutes from the final whistle. Although Alfie Devine scored a late consolation for Preston, it wasn’t enough to stop Phil Parkinson’s team from achieving back-to-back league wins for the first time this season.
After a historic year featuring an unprecedented third consecutive promotion, Wrexham fans are hopeful for more exciting outcomes as the team continues to climb the standings.
“All we can do is look up,” Broadhead said. “Getting the three points is the most important thing. Of course, making the playoffs would be incredible, but there’s still a long road ahead. We need to maintain belief in ourselves and around the club.”
Broadhead’s goal came after what many considered one of his best performances for the club against Sheffield United, highlighting why manager Phil Parkinson was eager to sign him from Ipswich.
“I was incredibly pleased with his performance,” Parkinson remarked. “He was outstanding, and the goal was fantastic—a brilliant cross from Kieffer [Moore] and a great header from Nathan. He consistently shows his aerial ability in training.”
Preston’s seven-match unbeaten streak ended, partly due to Watford’s late winner against Norwich, which saw them fall out of the top six.
Following the excitement of Wrexham’s 5-3 comeback win against Sheffield United on Boxing Day, the opening of this match was notably quieter. Preston was first to threaten, but Arthur Okonkwo made a brave save at the feet of Brad Potts, who was making his first start of the season after a hamstring injury.
Wrexham didn’t register a shot on goal until the 21st minute, but they soon sprang into action. After a blocked shot from Josh Windass, Broadhead unleashed a fierce drive that was parried away by Daniel Iversen, who managed to deny Kieffer Moore on the rebound as well.
They nearly took the lead five minutes later when Okonkwo made a quick throw that sent Broadhead sprinting into the box, but he fired just wide of the target.
However, there was no mistake 11 minutes later; Moore outmuscled a defender on the right and delivered an excellent cross, allowing Broadhead to nod in his fifth goal of the season.
Unfortunately for Wrexham, this would be Moore’s last contribution, as he went down with a hamstring injury late in the first half and had to be replaced by Sam Smith.
Without their star striker, Wrexham found themselves under more pressure in the second half as Preston pushed forward.
Eight minutes after the break, Daniel Jebbison set up Thierry Small, but the left-back’s shot from a promising position was weak and easily collected by Okonkwo.
Then, Devine had a golden opportunity when he was left unchecked at the back post from a corner, but his volley hit the side-netting.
Wrexham struggled to break free, yet Smith came close to doubling their lead with a powerful shot in the 70th minute that Iversen pushed wide. From the subsequent corner, Callum Doyle headed just off-target.
They should have made it 3-0 in the 74th minute when George Thomason twisted into the box and delivered a corner, but a stretching Smith could only hit the post from a gaping goal.
A second goal finally arrived when two substitutes combined, with George Dobson threading the ball through for the onrushing Rathbone to score his second of the season.
Devine gave Preston a glimmer of hope with a low shot that beat Okonkwo six minutes before full-time, but Wrexham held on for a crucial win.
“I’m very pleased,” Parkinson stated. “It was crucial that we followed up our Boxing Day win with another strong performance. We discussed the mentality needed to respond after the Swansea defeat, and tonight we wanted to prove we could build on a great showing against Sheffield United. I believe we did just that against a solid side that’s up in the standings for a reason. Over the 90 minutes, we truly earned this win.”