Time flies when you’re having fun Down Under and Wrexham conclude their pre-season tour of Australia and New Zealand with a clash against Wellington Phoenix on Saturday.
From a commercial perspective, Wrexham’s pre-season tour has been a roaring success, with tens of thousands of fans turning out to watch the Red Dragons across their two games in Australia.
However, there have been issues for the team. Not only did Phil Parkinson’s men lose their last game against Sydney FC, but Ollie Rathbone also picked up a nasty-looking injury.
Now, Wrexham will wrap things up as they move over to New Zealand and face Wellington Phoenix. Ahead of the big game, here are a few things we’ll be looking out for.
Things we’ll be looking out for in Wrexham vs Wellington game
Where is Sam Smith?
Record signing Sam Smith has been notably absent so far on the tour. Parkinson admitted Smith is struggling for fitness, and there are still question marks over whether he will feature at all on Saturday.
We’re hoping he is at least fit enough to make the bench, and getting a few minutes under his belt would be a massive boost for Wrexham as they prepare to fly back to home soil.
Fans are eager to see Smith in action. Despite the arrival of Ryan Hardie, Smith is still likely to be the main striker for Wrexham in the coming campaign, and he will need to sharpen up as soon as possible if he’s to hit the ground running come August.
Ollie Rathbone’s absence will be felt
The Wrexham squad were concerned about Ollie Rathbone after the game this week, and it seems like the midfielder could be out for quite some time.
With this in mind, it will be very interesting to see who Parkinson plays in his place. Elliott Lee would be an obvious choice, especially given his star status for supporters overseas.
However, what will be even more interesting is whether the squad are up to the task of filling in for Rathbone at all.
Wrexham clearly need new signings, and have been linked with an abundance of midfield talent already this summer. If things don’t go to plan on Saturday, that pursuit for a new midfielder may well be expedited.
Ollie Palmer has to deliver, it’s now or never
Ollie Palmer has started both of Wrexham’s pre-season games so far, but it’s safe to say things haven’t gone to plan for the big striker Down Under.
We’d argue Palmer was one of the major negatives from the clash vs Sydney FC, and with his future in doubt already, it really does feel like make-or-break time for the veteran forward.
All eyes were on Palmer last time out, and will be again this weekend. If things don’t improve here, this may well be the last time we see him in a Wrexham shirt.
Will Parkinson play his strongest XI to end the tour?
Parkinson has rotated his squad substantially so far this summer and has not been afraid to give fringe players game time in the past two games.
While pre-season preparations won’t stop just because the fixtures Down Under are complete, this will be the last time Parkinson can put out his strongest line-up prior to the Championship opener against Southampton.
We would expect to see Arthur Okonkwo reinstalled between the sticks, and some telling decisions when it comes to the battle for a first-team spot between Ryan Longman and Ryan Barnett. More importantly, the preferred pairing up top will be fascinating.
If Parkinson does play his strongest side and still doesn’t see the desired level of performance, he will learn a lot about his squad and their readiness heading into the new season. Don’t be surprised to see a slew of new signings once this tour is over!