Wrexham said goodbye to Steven Fletcher this summer, and the veteran striker may now call time on his fantastic career.
Wrexham were always going to make changes to Phil Parkinson’s squad following yet another promotion.
The jump from League One to the Championship is huge, and Wrexham were forced into difficult decisions in order to cope with the step-up in class.
Paul Mullin’s move to Wigan Athletic was a tough one for many fans, even if the writing had been on the wall throughout 2025.
Mullin wasn’t the only striker to leave, as Phil Parkinson also decided to let Steven Fletcher go at the end of his contract.
Fletcher admitted his exit was not by choice, with Parkinson simply deciding to move on from the veteran Scot.
Steven Fletcher on Ryan Reynolds
Fletcher was immensely popular at Wrexham, even if most of his two-year stay was centred around substitute appearances.
A former Premier League striker, Fletcher showed that top-level quality when coming off the bench.
Fletcher bagged eight goals in each of his two league campaigns for Wrexham, despite starting just 12 games.
That is quite the record, and Fletcher claims Rob McElhenney wanted him to stay at Wrexham before Parkinson let him go.
Speaking on The Warm-Up, Fletcher also opened up on his strong relationship with Ryan Reynolds.
Fletcher noted that Reynolds would regularly send him video messages on WhatsApp, especially after big moments.
Fletcher added that he thinks Reynolds particularly liked him because he was willing to treat him like one of the boys, rather than a Hollywood mega-star.
“If I go through my WhatsApp with Ryan Reynolds, honestly, it’s video after video,” said Fletcher.
“I went through a little patch last season: I kept coming on with about 20 minutes to go, it was three games in a row that I’d scored the winner.
“I’d get in the changing room, you know what you do, you go on your phone straight away, and the first message wasn’t from the wife, it was him! Straight away, it was him straight away with a big video message.
“I think that’s why Ryan liked me, because when he’d come in the dressing room, quite a lot of the boys were like ‘Oh, there’s Ryan, how you doing’. I’d just shout across the changing room to him, ‘Alright big man!’” he added when asked if he liked to banter with Reynolds.
Looking back on Reynolds’ reaction to Fletcher’s exit
McElhenney and Reynolds regularly show the personal touch with Wrexham players, but that means departures hurt that little bit more.
Most owners keep players at arm’s length, but that isn’t McElhenney and Reynolds.
Fletcher’s comments suggest that both McElhenney and Reynolds thought highly of him, and that was certainly clear on Reynolds’ part when Fletcher was released.
Reynolds sent an emotional message to Fletcher as his exit was announced, going as far as to say that he will miss the striker.
“Mr @stevenfletcher9official: words aren’t agile enough to capture what you’ve brought to Wrexham, the sport, and the lives of myself and this whole town. You aren’t a PART of greatness. You ARE greatness.
“I don’t really know what a co-chairmen is supposed to do or say in these moments and I don’t much care. I’m gonna miss you. I’ll miss your leadership and wit and the way you remind everyone — including me — that this is also FUN. Like the first day we met, I’m here for you any time and any place. Always,” he added.
There will be many more painful departures to come as Wrexham continue to progress, but few will hit Reynolds quite as hard as Fletcher’s exit.