Wrexham beat Barnsley in a League One meeting in midweek thanks to a late goal from Ollie Rathbone.
Tuesday’s clash was the final match of a home triple-header, with Wrexham looking to make it three wins on the spin.
The Red Dragons saw off Exeter City two weekends ago at the Racecourse Ground before beating Lincoln City 1-0 last Tuesday.
The Wrexham players were then handed this past weekend off as they were already out of the FA Cup following a disappointing showing against Harrogate Town last month.
It was a tight meeting in Wales this time around but Ollie Rathbone stepped up to score the winner and secure Wrexham a 1-0 win over Barnsley.
The home side were knocking on the door for much of the 90 minutes but it took some real magic from the midfielder to hand Phil Parkinson’s team the victory.
Ollie Rathbone question to Wrexham fans after Barnsley
With a tough away fixture against Burton now on the horizon against Burton this weekend, it was imperative Wrexham ended their run of home matches with a win.
And thanks to Rathbone, the Hollywood-owned club have done exactly that, gaining some much-needed ground in the title race in the process.
League leaders Wycombe Wanderers drew on Tuesday, meaning Wrexham have now closed the gap on them to just one point – though Matt Bloomfield’s men do still have a game in hand.
Birmingham City are four points adrift of Parkinson’s men as well but with three chances to close that gap.
For now, though, Wrexham are flying high and Rathbone has taken to Instagram to celebrate.
The ex-Rotherham United star posted a story of him celebrating in front of the home faithful alongside James McClean and Andy Cannon with his caption reading: “Are you not entertained?!?!”
- READ MORE: Barnsley fans left furious at Wrexham star James McClean in League One clash – they were so baffled
Ollie Rathbone Wrexham stats vs Barnsley
Wrexham paid a then-club record fee for Rathbone this past summer but the 28-year-old did take some time getting up to speed in Wales.
After their FA Cup exit to League Two outfit Harrogate in November, Wrexham were told they need something different to Rathbone.
The Englishman had struggled to nail down a starting berth, with Rathbone expressing concern over his playing time.
However, Rathbone has now started Wrexham’s last three matches, scoring in two of them.
And with George Dobson now suspended for the weekend’s meeting with Burton, the summer addition is expected to start once more, with fans no doubt looking forward to seeing him put in a repeat of his showing against Barnsley.
| Ollie Rathbone | Stats for Wrexham vs Barnsley |
| Minutes played | 90 |
| Goals | 1 |
| Duels (won) | 14 (9) |
| Total tackles | 5 |
| Touches | 54 |