Wrexham were hit with another home defeat on Tuesday night, losing 2-1 to in-form Leyton Orient at the STōK Cae Ras.
Wrexham had done so well to build another strong run after losing the unbeaten home record at the hands of Stevenage in January.
Four straight wins across League One and EFL Trophy games had generated real momentum for Wrexham once again.
Sadly, that progress was halted on Tuesday night as Wrexham were beaten by Leyton Orient.
Ollie Rathbone’s goalscoring form continued as he fired Wrexham in front but Orient found goals either side of the break.
Charlie Kelman and Jamie Donley found the net to hand Orient the win and leave Wrexham fans criticising Phil Parkinson.
Phil Parkinson frustrated after Wrexham message
Wrexham simply weren’t good enough after the break and couldn’t break down an Orient side in brilliant form.
Elliot Lee’s injury absence didn’t help matters and Wrexham’s lack of other attacking midfielders only exacerbated the problem.
There is much for Parkinson to think about as Wrexham prepare to face Mansfield Town this weekend.
Wrexham must get back on track quickly but one moment left Parkinson particularly frustrated on Tuesday night.
Orient’s equaliser saw Charlie Kelman peel off his marker and fire home from a low cross.
Kelman has now bagged 10 League One goals this season and after seeing his cause Manchester City problems, Parkinson was aware of his threat.
Speaking on Wrexham Matchday Live, Parkinson noted that he had told the Wrexham players to stay tight to Kelman.
Seeing the Orient strike find space to score really frustrated Parkinson, admitting that it was ‘really disappointing’ given the focus on him in the pre-match build-up.
“I was disappointed with the goal we conceded,” said Parkinson.
“Giving Kelman that time in the box, a player who’s in a good run of form, was really disappointing.
“I felt if we had got in at half time at 1-0, I’d have fancied us to win it, it was that goal. They hadn’t really threatened us at that point, they got in down the right hand side but nothing had come from it.
“It was frustrating to concede that goal against Kelman, who we’d spoken about in the build up to the game, that we needed to be touch tight with him in the box,” he added.
Wrexham have shown the ability to bounce back
The one positive from Tuesday’s defeat is that Wrexham don’t often let defeats linger.
The first loss of the season, away at Birmingham City, was followed up by a 2-1 win over Crawley Town.
After losing to Stevenage in October, Wrexham hammered Northampton and also beat Exeter City 3-0 after losing to Stockport County.
The New Year’s Day defeat Barnsley was followed by a win over Peterborough United too.
There was a stick patch in January as Wrexham lost to Shrewsbury Town and Stevenage either side of drawing with Birmingham.
That Stevenage defeat sparked four wins though and Wrexham will be looking to call on that resilience upon heading to face Mansfield Town this weekend.