Wrexham got back to winning ways on Saturday afternoon as Phil Parkinson saw his side beat Mansfield Town 1-0 at the STōK Cae Ras.
Wrexham simply had to hit back in front of the home fans after a difficult day at Harrogate Town last weekend.
Phil Parkinson’s side fell to a 1-0 FA Cup defeat last Sunday and a win in League One was needed in order to get back on track.
Wrexham certainly did that, beating Mansfield Town 1-0 thanks to Ryan Barnett’s early goal.
Barnett was praised by Wrexham teammates after his low drive in the opening 10 minutes secured a vital win.
Mansfield were a ‘tough’ opponent in the eyes of Rob McElhenney and Stags boss Nigel Clough rued refereeing calls which didn’t go his way as Wrexham picked up a big victory.
Andy Morrell praises Wrexham substitute
Wrexham had to dig deep in order to get the win here and had some luck at times with Lee Gregory rattling the woodwork in the second half.
This was a real squad effort as Wrexham battled away to secure all three points whilst having much less possession.
Parkinson made three changes off the bench with Jacob Mendy, new signing Jon Dadi Bodvarsson and summer addition Ollie Rathbone coming on.
Rathbone was introduced in place of Andy Cannon with around 25 minutes to play and helped Wrexham see out a win and a clean sheet.
Wrexham hero Andy Morrell spoke about Rathbone’s display whilst speaking on Wrexham Match Day Live on Wrexham’s official YouTube channel.
Morrell felt that Rathbone was ‘excellent’ after coming on, proving to be so effective defensively.
Morrell praised Rathbone for ‘little challenges’ to pinch possession back from Mansfield, helping ease the pressure on the Wrexham back line.
“I thought Ollie Rathbone was excellent in there. The second balls he got, they were so important. The little nicks, the little challenges that he made to take the ball off the Mansfield team was really cute,” said Morrell.
Ollie Rathbone will prove his worth for Wrexham
Rathbone quit Rotherham United to join Wrexham over the summer in a club-record move.
Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds backe the move for Rathbone, forking out a ‘significant’ fee according to Rotherham boss Steve Evans with Wrexham paying in the region of £500,000.
Many would have assumed that Rathbone would therefore play a starring role in the Wrexham midfield, but that hasn’t quite been the case.
Rathbone has been limited to just three League One starts so far with Cannon usually chosen as the man to join George Dobson and Elliot Lee in midfield.
That means Rathbone has to be patient and take his chances when they come.
Saturday was a prime example and Rathbone certainly helped Wrexham get over the line, proving his value to Parkinson in the process.
Signings aren’t just judged in their first few months at the club and we have faith in Rathbone continuing to make an impact – whether from the bench or from the starting XI – over the course of his long League One campaign.