Wrexham are on a promotion charge, having lost just one game in their last ten League One outings, including notable victories over Barnsley and Peterborough.
Phil Parkinson now has a rare period of rest and time on the training ground following the postponement of the EFL Trophy game against Port Vale and no fixture scheduled for the third round of the FA Cup.
Attention has also turned to the January transfer window, and Wrexham are targeting a new striker with the feeling that Paul Mullin and Ollie Palmer need some firepower alongside them.
However, current striker Steven Fletcher produced a ‘magic’ performance against Peterborough and has scored a number of late winners in the club’s excellent run of form. It is not just on the pitch where the veteran striker is having a huge impact.
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Steven Fletcher mentoring Ollie Palmer off the pitch
Speaking on the latest edition of the Rob. Ryan. Red podcast, journalist Nathan Salt has explained the importance of Fletcher in the dressing room and how he has helped teammates adapt to playing at a higher level – most notably Ollie Palmer.
Salt explained: “Palmer has become much more of a goal threat because Fletcher was telling him what positions to take up and saying, ‘get here, get there’ and that’s part of the reason why Palmer has adapted to football league life better than we thought.”
Salt also then admitted his surprise at how well Palmer has played this season; he said: “I didn’t think he would be good enough for League Two, but he’s been more than good enough for League Two and League One and a lot of that is down to Steven Fletcher.”
Fletcher’s arm around Palmer’s shoulders even extended to the pair going for coffee together according to Salt, and the impact has been there for all to see with Palmer leading the line on 25 occasions for the Red Dragons this season.
Fletcher also has ‘eerie’ comparison with loanee Sam Dalby
One dilemma for Parkinson in the transfer window is whether to recall Sam Dalby from his loan spell at Dundee United.
Dalby has earned widespread praise for his performances up in Scotland and is currently the league’s top goalscorer with ten to his name so far.
Should Parkinson choose to recall Dalby, the boss will be hoping that once again Steven Fletcher can use his experience to nurture Dalby having also spent the 23/24 season at Dundee United. Fletcher scored eight goals in 29 league appearances during his time in Scotland.
Whether or not Wrexham add options to their attack this January remains to be seen but in Fletcher, it seems that Parkinson has a player willing to do everything for the cause both on and off the pitch.