Wrexham took a giant leap towards promotion with an emphatic 4-1 victory over Crawley Town tonight and one player ran the show.
Wrexham hosted Crawley Town in League Two tonight.
Buoyed by their dramatic win over Colchester United, Phil Parkinson‘s men carried that momentum into tonight’s match by blowing away the play-off chasers.
Ryan Barnett scored his first goal for the club, scrambling home the ball inside 20 minutes before Paul Mullin added a second moments later.
Remarkably, the Reds only had 33% possession in the contest but were devastating on the counter-attack as Andy Cannon scored a third with a predatory finish and Mullin added a fourth eight minutes from time.
The Liverpool-born goal machine has an incredible 11 goals in his last 10 League Two matches, as his sensational form has dragged Wrexham towards the brink of glory.
Parkinson’s men are secured in the top three by five points and can clinch promotion to the third tier if MK Dons lose to Mansfield and Wrexham beat Forest Green this weekend.
Mullin will steal the headlines, and rightfully so, but one star in red deserves just as much praise for his involvement.
One Wrexham star ran the show against Crawley Town
Wrexham’s midfield machine Andy Cannon was arguably more important than Mullin against Crawley.
Labelled as “immense” for his performances this term, Cannon’s display tonight fitted that tag as the 28-year-old ran the show centrally.
Grabbing an assist for Mullin’s first and getting in on the act himself, the Englishman was everywhere and set the tone for their attacking dominance.
| Andy Cannon statistics v Crawley | Figure |
| Goals | 1 |
| Assists | 1 |
| Ground duels (won) | 6 (5) |
| Key passes | 3 |
| Tackles | 3 |
| Clearances | 2 |
Dominant in almost every department, it is no wonder some supporters believe he deserves a Player of the Season nomination.
Phil Parkinson has transformed Andy Cannon
Cannon is a midfielder most known for his energy and aggression to win the ball back, but Parkinson has transformed him into a different beast in front of goal.
The former Rochdale midfielder has only netted 17 times during his senior career, six of those strikes have come at Wrexham, with three in his last five appearances.
His stunning brace at Grimsby Town helped Wrexham get back to winning ways while his goal tonight was a finish every striker would be proud of, latching onto a loose ball in the box to slide home.
Even without his four goals and five assists this term, Cannon was in with a shout for Player of the Season, but his goal contributions have recently added an extra string to this bow.
Let’s hope Wrexham can wrap up promotion to League One next weekend.