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Pre-Season: Wrexham 2-3 Liverpool

Annual pre-season friendly against Liverpool, feels way too early to be starting the season. The one game of the year when wrexham fans are out-numbered in our own ground by scousers and local 'fake' scousers, for whom this is the only time this year that they will get to watch their heroes live. The game raises lots of cash for Wrexham's 'Centre of Excellence' though, which hopefully in the long-term will balance out the crap football and crap atmosphere of these games.

Disappointingly for the local Liverpool supporting kids Jermaine Pennant, Sissoko and Steve Finnan were the only players they'd probably recognise, amongst the many youth/reserve players Liverpool brought along padding out their squad. Wrexham gave the whole squad a game, first chance we've had to see new signings Conall Murtagh, Richard Hope and Eifion Williams in Wrexham shirts.

Unfortunately Liverpool were 3-0 up after 25 minutes killing the game earlier than usual, a hat-trick from some kid called Idrizaj. With a fresh set of players on for the 2nd half Wrexham clawed their way back into it through 2 clinical Eifion Williams finishes. The striker recently signed from Hartlepool already looks the business. By the time of his 2nd goal most of the Liverpool fans had left.

Despite the scoreline, Wrexham probably got more out of this than Liverpool. Shouldn't really start judging players on their first 45 minutes of friendly football after the pre-season break, but Conall Murtagh, Mike Procter, Eifion Williams, Levi Mackin, and youth-team left-back Neil Taylor looked the most impressive for Wrexham. Couldn't say anyone had a bad game though. The Blackburn friendly on Tuesday should be more competitive and a better spectacle to watch.

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Pre-Season: Wrexham 1-2 Blackburn Rovers

Another defeat but another encouraging pre-season friendly work-out against a top Premiership team, who brought along all their big-hitters. Again Wrexham played two different teams in each half, resting a few players, giving a few trialists a game. It was one of those trialists, Kaid Mohammed, who grabbed Wrexham's consolation in the second-half a nice finish, slotting past Brad Friedel.

Jason Roberts and Wrexham lad Robbie Savage gave Rovers the lead in the first-half, though it was a dubious penalty decision which gave Savage his goal. A much better game, a much better atmosphere and a much better performance from Wrexham than on Saturday, they should have drawn or even won last night. They had the chances.

Also on display for Blackburn the likes of Benni McCarthy, Morten Gamst Pedersen, David Dunn, Tugay, Ryan Nelsen, Stephen Warnock and, erm, Francis Jeffers.

The highlight of the night though was the constant dual between Blackburn's immensely talented (and confident) David Bentley, and Wrexham's rookie left-back Neil Taylor in the first-half. Taylor marked Bentley out of the game, putting in another performance beyond his years, he looks to have a brilliant future ahead of him. Crucially, he already has the fans on his side.

Also nice to see Matt Derbyshire back at the Racecourse doing the 50/50 half-time draw. He got a great reception from both Wrexham and Blackburn fans. His goalscoring exploits for both clubs in the last 18 months point to a great future ahead of him as well.

 

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