As far as drama goes, Wrexham’s Tuesday night meeting with Hull City in the EFL Cup’s first round was full of it.
Wrexham welcomed Hull City to the Racecourse on Tuesday night for what looked set to be a rather underwhelming Tuesday night game in the EFL Cup. But it proved to be exactly the opposite as Wrexham beat Hull City on penalties.
After Wrexham took an early lead, they were 3-1 down when the 90th minute rolled around. And much like in Wrexham’s season opener against Southampton last weekend, two late goals were scored, but this time it was Wrexham who scored them, and it was no other than Ollie Palmer who stepped up with two injury time goals to send the game to penalties.
Palmer also scored in the shootout which was won by Jack Marriott who made it five out of five penalties for Phil Parkinson’s side, putting them into the second round of the competition.
Expect Palmer to steal all the headlines from this game, and rightly so. The big striker has really given Parkinson some food for thought amid rumours that Palmer is set to leave Wrexham this summer.
But there were decent performances across the pitch, and arguably the best of the lot came from Harry Ashfield.
Harry Ashfield shines for Wrexham vs Hull City
The 19-year-old started the game and played 68 minutes before coming off. Despite not playing the full 90, he topped a lot of the stats for Wrexham on the day. It comes after Ashfield impressed on Wrexham’s Down Under Tour of Australia and New Zealand.
There are ongoing rumours that Wrexham could send Ashfield out on loan this summer, but after performances like his one on Tuesday, Parkinson may think twice about that.
There were plenty of Wrexham fans on X who pointed out Ashfield’s positive performance, too. The Dragons academy graduate started in the midfield alongside goal scorer Elliott Lee and George Evans and he put himself about going from box-to-box.
Harry Ashfield’s stats vs Hull City say it all, he was class
Ashfield didn’t shy away from any challenges and whenever he got on the ball he looked composed, got his head up and picked out a pass. They’re really positive signs for such a young player and such an inexperienced one too, and his stats certainly paint a positive picture.
He ranked first out of all the Wrexham players for tackles, ground duels and dribbles. It showcases not only his defensive work but his technical and attacking mindset too.
| Statistic | Ashfield vs Hull City |
| Passes | 17/21 |
| Tackles | 3 (1st) |
| Duels | 7/11 (3rd) |
| Ground duels | 6/10 (1st) |
| Dribbles | 2/3 (1st) |
Given the positive signs and given how Ashfield looked well at home against Championship opposition on Tuesday night, Parkinson may consider him as an option for this season. That said, a loan move where he plays a full 90 every week could be the perfect chance for him to develop at a quicker rate.
Wrexham return to Championship action against West Brom on Saturday.