Wrexham secured a first Championship victory on Saturday afternoon, beating Millwall 2-0 despite Nathan Broadhead’s absence.
Phil Parkinson’s wait for a Championship victory came to an end on Saturday afternoon, as Wrexham defeated Millwall at The Den.
Wrexham claimed just one point from the first three games, but a victory didn’t seem all that far away.
The first three points came on the road, with Kieffer Moore and Lewis O’Brien on the scoresheet in South London.
Much of the focus has been on transfers in recent days, with Wrexham securing three new faces on deadline day.
On the pitch, Wrexham can now head into the international break on a real high with that first win now in the books.
Phil Parkinson on Nathan Broadhead injury
Summer signing Moore is already becoming something of a cult hero, and has now scored four goals in his last three appearances.
Fellow Welsh forward Nathan Broadhead hasn’t been able to mirror that instant impact and missed out against Millwall.
Broadhead joined Wrexham in a deal worth up to £10million, leaving Ipswich Town for the STōK Cae Ras.
After a substitute appearance against West Bromwich Albion, Broadhead partnered Wales international teammate in attack against Sheffield Wednesday.
Phil Parkinson confirmed a calf issue for Broadhead last week, and the forward then missed the trip to Millwall.
Speaking to Wrexham’s official YouTube channel, Parkinson noted that swelling in Broadhead’s calf meant he missed out on Saturday.
Parkinson didn’t want to take any chances, but is looking forward to getting Broadhead back in action alongside other injured players.
“Nathan got a kick on the calf against West Brom, and there’s just some swelling and fluid in the muscle,” said Parkinson.
“We didn’t need to risk him today. He’s a key player, and this international break now gives us a chance to get some of those injured players back on the training pitch, because, when you look at the players who aren’t here today, there’s some real talent.
“When we get everybody fit, we’re going to have some good competition in the squad. We’re missing some really key players, but all making decent progress. Josh Windass was down with us today, he’s probably a couple of weeks away, George Thomason is back on the grass, obviously Ollie Rathbone will be a little bit longer, Cacace today, a really tough game for him to come into, he only really trained properly on Thursday, and I thought he grew into the game really well for us,” he added.
Cacace has pulled out of the New Zealand squad to face Australia in this international break, but it remains to be seen whether Broadhead follows suit.
Broadhead is part of the Wales squad to face Kazakhstan and Canada in the next week, and he currently looks set to feature for Craig Bellamy’s side despite Parkinson’s caution against Millwall.
Ollie Rathbone a fine example to Nathan Broadhead
Broadhead will face scrutiny this season, as is only natural for a player signed for £7.5million rising to £10million at this level.
The former Everton talent would have wanted a fast start to life at Wrexham, especially having waited so long to make his return to the club.
So far, Broadhead has faced a frustrating start to his Wrexham career, but it’s far, far too early to write him off.
Just look at Ollie Rathbone last year; he came in and battled through a slow start to end up as a hero in Wrexham’s promotion-winning campaign.
Some players hit the ground running, such as Moore, and others need a little more time to get going.
Broadhead has only played just over 120 minutes of action, and with a calf issue causing some problems, he deserves some time to shine.