Wrexham’s struggles away from home and in front of goal were both evident in their 2-1 defeat at Shrewsbury Town.
Ryan Barnett was fit to return to the starting line up and there was a rare start for Steven Fletcher, who scored his fifth goal in his last seven appearances for Wrexham.
Fans were impressed with Fletcher’s performance once again but his efforts were to no avail as the Red Dragons slipped to their fifth away defeat of the season.
After Paul Mullin’s recent struggle in form, the striker was dropped for the local derby and it has left Phil Parkinson with a big hole in the forward area.
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Jack Marriott should replace Paul Mullin in Parkinson’s Wrexham side
One positive to take from the defeat to Shrewsbury was that forward Jack Marriott returned to the squad for the first time since breaking his leg in October.
Fans were delighted to see Marriott back in the squad having had such an impact at the start of the campaign with five goals in the opening ten League One games.
Marriott’s creativity and eye for goal was evident in that burst at the start of the season and having already played for Fleetwood Town and Peterborough United at this level, Marriott’s experience could be vital in the promotion race.
Wrexham’s forward is relatively inexperienced at League One level with the likes of Mullin and Ollie Palmer used to plying their trade lower down the leagues.
Jack Marriott outperforms Wrexham’s forward options this season
The frustration and worry for Wrexham fans will be how much the injury will have set Marriott back from his blistering form at the start of the season.
However, if he can return to the form that he left before his horrific injury, Wrexham may have found the player to breed life into their promotion charge and solve their creativity issues.
| Key statistics this season (per 90) | Marriott | Mullin | Palmer |
| Goals | 5 | 2 | 3 |
| Shots | 1.45 | 1.32 | 0.53 |
| Shots on target | 61.1% | 34% | 29.4% |
Marriott not only has scored the same amount of goals this season as Mullin and Palmer combined but he has done so having missed the most part of the season.
He is a constant threat to opposition defences, always looking to test out the keeper and is highly accurate with his shooting when he does so.
Marriott can be the perfect strike partner for the in-form Steven Fletcher and ignite Wrexham as an attacking force this season.