Wrexham are putting a lot more emphasis and money into the club’s youth academy, which Phil Parkinson sees as an integral pillar of the club moving forward.
Wrexham have never really been in a position where they’ve had the time and money to put more focus on the youth academy.
But now a Championship side, thriving under the ownership of Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney and having more money than most in the Football League, the time is perfect for the Dragons to start placing more emphasis on youth.
Max Cleworth is the big example of someone coming through the ranks, and not just becoming a first-team player, but becoming a key one too.
Last year, Wrexham were given permission to build a new academy at Darland High School. The club has also expanded the age groups of which it recruits, with Parkinson now revealing just how much focus is being placed on the topic.
Phil Parkinson discusses Wrexham’s plans for the youth academy
Wrexham are going on a pre-season tour of Australia and New Zealand this summer. Ahead of the trip, Parkinson has given an interview with a New Zealand outlet called Stuff, where he spoke about a number of topics, mentioning the focus on the academy as part of the longer-term vision for Wrexham.
Parkinson explained: “So we, or they [Reynolds and McElhenney] and the staff are putting a structure together to give us a great chance, and we know that the academy going forward is going to be crucial for us, because we need to produce our own players.
“But as much as we’re playing catchup at first-team level, we’ve had to play catchup in the academy as well, because we’ve only just been started it for two years and we’re competing against established teams with category one academies.”
Coincidentally, Wrexham are about to sign Danny Ward who is a graduate of the club’s youth academy. He, Cleworth and everyone at the club will be hoping that more can follow in their footsteps in the near future, and given Parkinson or whoever is in charge later down the line a steady stream of new, homegrown players.
Who are the Wrexham youth players to keep an eye on in 2025/26?
With the Dragons’ academy still a work in progress, so to say, don’t expect to see many youngsters coming up and being involved in the first-team squad, especially as it’s now the Championship we’re dealing with.
But at the end of last season when Wrexham released their retained list, the club confirmed that pro deals had been offered to Tom Kelly, Alex Moore, Rio Owen and Max Purvis, and so those four are definitely on Parkinson’s radar and in contention to move up to the first-team at some point.
In particular, Kelly could be one who breaks through soon. Last season there were reports of Championship clubs scouting Kelly at Wrexham, highlighting his potential which could yet be fulfilled with Wrexham in the coming years.
As the academy grows, Wrexham need to make a clear path for these players to move up into the first-team, or run the risk of producing good players and then having them snapped up by clubs higher up the food chain, as so often happens in the Football League.