Wrexham continue to rise and boss Phil Parkinson has certainly been a huge factor in the success under Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds.
Wrexham have been on quite the journey since 2021.
Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds paid £2million for Wrexham and have sent the club on a remarkable trajectory ever since.
Not only have Wrexham achieved on the pitch, securing two promotions in a row, but they have grown off the pitch too.
‘Welcome to Wrexham’ has been a roaring success with Wrexham fans now emerging across the world.
Wrexham even sit second in the League One table with genuine ambitions of a third promotion in a row with Reynolds aiming for the Championship.
Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds comments on Phil Parkinson
McElhenney and Reynolds drive the headlines but it’s manager Phil Parkinson who deserves so much praise.
Parkinson turned 57 on Sunday, so we took a look back at how McElhenney and Reynolds reacted to appointing Parkinson back in 2021.
We recently looked at managers who were inked with Wrexham upon the decision to move on from Dean Keates.
Wrexham went for Parkinson in the end, a decision which has certainly paid off more than three years on.
As quoted by BBC Sport, McElhenney and Reynolds released a joint statement upon appointing Parkinson and explained their decision.
The duo noted that ‘very credible managers’ put themselves forward for the Wrexham job, but Parkinson was their man from the get-go.
McElhenney and Reynolds claimed that Parkinson really embraced the club’s vision and as soon as he was interested, Wrexham had their top target.
“The process put in place by Les Reed, Shaun Harvey, Humphrey Ker and Fleur Robinson was thorough, and we were presented with any number of good options, all of whom would have been very credible managers for the club,” they said.
“We’d like to thank all those that applied for the role but once we knew Phil was interested, he was our man and we got him.
“Phil has an immediate objective of gaining promotion but is conscious of our ambitions for the club and embraced each element of our vision,” he added.
Parkinson going nowhere
Parkinson has taken that backing and justified the decision in brilliant fashion.
Wrexham have endured some bumps along the way, including missing out on promotion back in 2022.
Parkinson has remained level-headed throughout and has been the understated mastermind behind Wrexham’s rise, away from the Hollywood glitz and glamour.
Parkinson now has Wrexham challenging at the top of League One and another promotion is not out of the question.
There are games where Parkinson’s approach may be a little frustrating but Wrexham have experienced many more highs than lows under Parkinson.
Pundits have questioned whether Parkinson can stay at Wrexham in the years to come, suggesting that McElhenney and Reynolds will want a more attractive style of play down the line.
Perhaps that day will come but Parkinson isn’t going anywhere as things stand and long may that continue with Wrexham able to celebrate Parkinson’s birthday as a club with lofty ambitions and the right man at the wheel.