[cheers and applause]
[dramatic music]
♪ ♪
SINGER: ♪ Don't forget where you came from ♪
♪ Don't forget what you're made of ♪
♪ The ones who were there ♪
♪ When no one else would care ♪
♪ Don't be afraid to cry now ♪
♪ Even when the world comes crashing in ♪
♪ ♪
♪ Don't forget to sing when you win ♪
♪ ♪
♪ Don't forget to sing when you win ♪
So Rocky 1, he loses.
Rocky II, he wins.
So season one, we lost.
ANNOUNCER: Grimsby look to have won it.
Setting up for season two, where we won.
[crowd roaring] ANNOUNCER: Champions!
ROB: And now here we are in season three.
Is this where we fight Hulk Hogan?
Well, yes.
It's where we open by wrestling Hulk Hogan.
[grunts]
SPEAKER: There's not much more to say.
SPEAKER: When you go up a level and you make mistakes,
you get punished.
Welcome to Football League.
And then eventually we fight Mr. T.
MR. T: I'm the champ!
I'll beat you like I did last time.
ANNOUNCER: To end the season, Wrexham want
to get back at Stockport for that 5-0 beating.
OK, and then next, the season after this, we'll fight Drago.
I don't know what the parallels
are going to be, other than this is most likely the worst--
the worst season.
Oh.
I'm taking a selfie now. That's quite cool though.
Life isn't a smooth ride, is it?
The big obstacle with losing my dad.
A lot of people say, you know, with grief,
that it gets easier.
But I think for me, it's actually getting harder,
you know?
DIONNE: The last couple of years have been difficult
for us as a family.
We draw strength from one another.
ANNOUNCER: And Lili Jones has scored.
LILI: I don't think my mum
gets the recognition she deserves.
She's genuinely one-of-a-kind.
I don't think any of this would have
happened without her.
OLIVER: My photographs of the club
grew into kind of an obsessional project,
although I've still yet to stand inside the Racecourse
Ground or even attend a match.
This is the beginning of my next chapter.
[soft music]
ALISON: I think it's quite surreal that three years ago,
Millie was at quite a low point in her life.
You went through dark times. - Yeah.
ALISON: It was pretty awful.
But there was a light,
wasn't there, at the end of the tunnel?
Yeah.
It's for Mullin.
Wow.
Thank you.
ALISON: She's overcome that.
She's come a long way.
MICHAEL: When I was ill, I had these tubes down me throat.
I thought I might not be able to talk again.
[cheering]
Me voice gradually started coming back.
You know, you never know what's around the corner,
but it's not always negative.
There's always positive things as well.
RYAN: People want to experience
a piece of the club.
And they want to feel like they're
a part of this-- this magical, wonderful story
that is unfolding before our eyes.
ROB: This is a team and a town that always
is going to put on a good fight and see what happens.
♪ ♪
We're off to Colchester.
Hopefully a win this time.
Can you tell me about how long the journey is today?
I don't even want to think about it.
But just get on and then see what time we end up there.
[laughs]
SPEAKER: Wrexham will make the long trip
to Colchester today.
You feeling confident? SPEAKER: I don't know.
We tend to get there around about 12:00,
so five hours.
231 miles.
Oh.
SPEAKER: Our away struggles continue to plague us
a little bit.
The loss at Doncaster wasn't great.
And now we have to go away again,
and this time, we have to win.
RYAN: And even though people keep telling us
we don't know what we're doing,
we keep bringing in people who do know what they're doing.
That's why we brought in Phil and Shaun.
And look how that turned out.
My friend and trainer, Don Saladino, at Life Fitness
donated a ton of equipment.
And Gatorade helps us with the sports science of it all.
We have HP helping out with our infrastructure.
We're trying to go global with our online presence.
We have experts upgrading the stadium.
You know, we may not always know what we're doing--
[notification whistles]
But these people certainly do.
And all they have to do right now
is win a goddamn away match, please.
Five games to go.
We need the points.
We need 12 points out of 15
to be certain to go up, so
we could do with a win today.
We're currently sat in third place,
two points ahead of MK Dons.
I'm sure you remember them from earlier.
[grunts]
It seems our Hulk Hogans are expected
to win easily today in their game against last
placed Forest Green Rovers.
SPEAKER: Colchester are on the lower part of Division.
We're at the top.
So both are fighting for points.
They want to come out of the relegation zone.
We want to go up.
ANNOUNCER: So here we go.
Colchester kicking towards their own supporters.
About to get things underway as the ball is fed backwards.
[dramatic music]
SPEAKER: A win today means we'll keep our place
in the top three.
But if we lose and MK Dons win, we'll drop
down to a playoff position.
Given our history in the playoffs,
that's not something any of us particularly fancy.
[crowd chanting]
ANNOUNCER: There's so much at stake for Colchester.
You almost prefer to play teams in mid-table
at this time of year.
When you're fighting for your life,
you're going to be chucking everything forward,
everything at this game.
And that's what Wrexham are going to be up against today.
ANNOUNCER: Yeah, absolutely.
I mean, at this stage of the season,
results matter so much more.
But this atmosphere, wow.
[crowd chanting]
ANNOUNCER: Back inside, Read finds Smith
with a shooting opportunity,
close them down.
McGeehan headsets, good hands by Okonkwo.
And then Evans over the top.
It's a great ball.
Mullin on the chase, one on one with the keeper.
Oh, and he miscontrols it.
Barnett stayed up with him here.
Takes on his man, shapes the shot, puts it wide.
Oh, what a moment that was.
Paul Mullin on 99 goals in a Wrexham shirt,
he may be able to cross the line
and get his hundredth goal, which will
be a fantastic achievement.
[crowd chanting] Wrexham, Wrexham!
ANNOUNCER: Wrexham monopolizing possession now.
O'Connell has a great ball down the line.
And Mendy's hamstring is gone.
Oh, no.
What a shame that is.
It was a great ball down the line by O'Connell.
ANNOUNCER: As soon as he accelerated out of that,
he's pulled up.
ANNOUNCER: The gasp from the crowd
when it happened as well.
He looks visibly distressed.
He holds his shirt to his face.
What a shame.
That's an awful way to end the first half.
Wrexham have shown threat but will be disappointed
not to have scored.
With a look at the live scores,
MK Dons have gone up 1-0.
This is now a must-win match for Wrexham.
Wrexham from the kickoff, gonna be long again.
A bit chaotic, this.
Come on!
ANNOUNCER: Colchester can start
again from the halfway line.
Helps it on nicely.
McGeehan does well to feed it to Akinde with the return
pass is strong.
But Akinde can hit this.
It's in!
Akinde slams it.
Okonkwo got down low, got his right hand to it,
but it ricocheted off his hand and into the net.
And, well, Wrexham are going to have to find
an extra gear here now.
That's just going over the top.
Barnett looks to pick him out.
Keeper can't come for that.
The defender heads the ball away.
Mullin heads it.
So close to the 100th goal for Mullin.
Mullin, get in the box!
[dramatic music]
ANNOUNCER: On his right foot, hits across to the far post!
And Mullin scores his 100th--
Paul Mullin, Wrexham equalize.
And an historic moment, the eighth Wrexham player to
score 100 goals.
It's an outstanding achievement to get 100
goals as quickly as he's done.
ANNOUNCER: He sets himself, steps up, scores!
Mullin with his first goal for Wrexham.
SPEAKER: It's almost like the more importance
there is on the game--
ANNOUNCER: To Mullin, what a--
yeah!
[cheering]
SPEAKER: The more likely you feel he is to score a goal.
He kind of thrives on that.
ANNOUNCER: Mullin, right there!
♪ ♪
ANNOUNCER: And just as he did for his first
Wrexham goal, he immediately picks
the ball up after his 100th.
No time to celebrate, he knows
the win is more important.
[shouting indistinctly] Come on, work!
[crowd chanting]
ANNOUNCER: Here's Evans to the near post.
Palmer's shirt being pulled.
It gets a flick across the way.
It's in! It's in!
Max Cleworth.
Cleworth's first ever league goal.
And that is it.
MAX: I can't really describe it, to be fair.
A bit of relief, excitement, like, even not just because it
was my first league goal, but at the moment
in the game that we needed to win,
just managed to run into the corner
and have a little moment with the lads.
But, yeah, apparently, the celebrations on the bench
were even better, so.
Come on!
ANNOUNCER: Mullin's 100th goal and Cleworth's first,
there's a certain poetry to this moment,
our current superstar forging the path for the 21-year-old
with a bright future, just as it's gone throughout
Wrexham's 160-year history.
SPEAKER: First to be a young lad like that and pop up with
a match-winning goal in a very key moment of the season,
unbelievable, and I'm so pleased for him, honestly.
ANNOUNCER: And Wrexham win!
A huge, huge away win.
How's that for improvement on the road?
Nothing's over yet.
But that was special.
[cheers and applause]
SPEAKER: Yeah, we've hit many milestones this year
with Phil Parkinson getting to 100 wins,
Paul Mullin scoring 100 goals.
But someone else already scored 100 goals before Paul did that.
ANNOUNCER: Hughes has a [indistinct].
ANNOUNCER: What a goal.
ANNOUNCER: That's what Rosie Hughes does.
SPEAKER: And that person is, of course, Rosie Hughes.
PHOEBE: Rosie is just a goal-scorer.
I mean, the confidence that she has in front of goal.
SPEAKER: She is the seventh
player to score 100 goals in Wrexham
and the first female.
And she's done it in ludicrous time.
100 goals in 46 games is phenomenal.
SPEAKER: To average two goals per match
and reach 100 goals in record-breaking
time is absolutely stunning.
She is a big character around the squad, isn't she?
But I think that actually adds to her performance
and to the team's performance because we just kind
of all kind of go with her.
Right, so how have you found this season, girls?
I didn't expect us to do so well.
Like, in all honesty, I thought we'd go up and be,
like, near relegation.
And then to finish top three, I'm surprised.
SPEAKER: The Wrexham women have had
a really good campaign.
If you think about it, it's their first ever season
in the Adran Premier League.
It's a massive step up, and they finished in third.
SPEAKER: We've more than competed in the league
that we've gone into.
We got a ridiculous amount of points, scored
a ridiculous amount of goals.
GEMMA: To see the players out there and being very
comfortable and competing at the top level,
yeah, I'm hugely proud of that.
ANNOUNCER: Can she finish? Oh, yes, she can.
SPEAKER: Yeah, it's not just the league
where they've exceeded expectations.
They've done really well in the cup too.
We had a decent cup run, haven't we really?
The FAW Women's Cup is a separate cup competition.
It's very different to the league.
You play teams that are not only in your league
but in other leagues as well.
ANNOUNCER: On and off the line.
Incredible, it's McKenzie.
ANNOUNCER: Scores!
As a women's section, we've never won the Cup Final.
SPEAKER: Yeah, it's a chance to end
the season with a trophy,
but it's also a chance to get a bit of revenge
against the team that has really been
their nemesis, Cardiff City.
Can't shake them off.
Yeah, the Bluebirds have dominated the top tier
of Welsh women's football for quite a while.
They've got three league titles, one Adran trophy,
and if they beat Wrexham, it's their fourth Welsh Cup.
[dramatic music]
- Hey. - Hello.
- Good to see you. - How are you?
- Brilliant. - Excited.
- Should be interesting. - I know.
- Big match. - Super excited.
I'm really privileged to have been asked by the club
to help Mark on some of the commentary
duties, which is, you know, super exciting for me.
I never thought that would be something I'd end up doing.
It's nice to still have a bit of involvement,
feel a part of it, you know?
OK, listen in.
This is a big occasion, all right?
It's a perfect opportunity to round
off a very, very good season.
I can see in all your fucking eyes.
The desire today is fucking unbelievable.
Let's take the game to them.
We're going to be taking that fucking trophy home.
Fuck Cardiff, this is our game.
MARK: Hello and welcome to the Welsh Cup Final.
Wrexham for the first time playing
in this massive, massive fixture against the giants
of Cardiff City.
I'm Mark Griffiths and I'm joined,
of course, by Mia Roberts.
MIA: Wrexham definitely today coming in
as massive, massive underdogs given
how their season sort of gone against Cardiff this year.
MARK: Cardiff then get things underway.
We need to make sure that we stick in this final
for as long as we can.
♪ ♪
Wrexham's defense have lost their shape.
This is dangerous.
Walk the edge of the area, goes wide, beats Fuller,
and scores.
LILI: There's something different about us
when we play Swansea and Cardiff.
We're a bit as if we respect them too much.
We're still competing with them though.
We're giving them a good game.
It's not easy for them to turn us over.
MARK: Dangerous moments on transition here as Cardiff
burst into the box.
Brilliant tackle by Allen.
MIA: Unbelievable.
♪ ♪
MARK: She sweeps it in, lots of movement in the goalmouth.
Keeper comes, punches it half clear, drops loose,
and it's blocked from Allen and hooked just wide.
Oh, that was so close.
Oh, I thought it was in.
MARK: What a first half by Wrexham.
Cardiff have the goal but, for me,
Wrexham were the better team.
♪ ♪
Come on, Wrexham!
MARK: Allen bursts forward with interception.
Feeds it through Carra Jones now.
Has got Pritchard to her right and feeds it to Pritchard.
Into the box, tight angle.
Heavy first touch.
Big, big tackle that.
Drive, drive, drive!
MIA: Honestly, I'm on the edge of my seat here.
MARK: Lightfoot gets to the box, sends it to the keeper.
Makes a key save.
Use goes to then in, Small and mishits this as well.
Long range shot comes back in.
It's in!
[cheers and applause]
Wrexham are heading for defeat in this, our first ever,
Welsh Cup Final.
But it's the most honorable defeat that you
could possibly imagine.
There is the final whistle.
MIA: Yeah, I really hope they can lift
their heads up and not be disheartened with how
this game has finished.
Because, my word, what performance they've put in
and how proud they've made all those Wrexham fans today.
SPEAKER: Talking to lots of the players afterwards,
you know, I think they were frustrated
because they had played so well
and come away with nothing.
But there was an enormous sense of pride, enormous sense of,
like, well, that's just laid down a little bit of a marker
for next season, that, you know,
this is a team that could compete with the very best
in the country.
Listen, no fucking disgrace in that performance whatsoever.
SPEAKER: Finishing third and making a cup final,
that's a fantastic achievement, certainly first year.
But now the pressure's on.
We've set our own standards.
We've raised our own bar.
We've got to build on that for next season.
ANNOUNCER: Hello and welcome to the Stok Cae Ras
as Wrexham entertain Forest Green Rovers.
SPEAKER: Today is the day that Wrexham could be promoted,
but it's a little bit of a long shot.
Ready for some maths? Well, here we go.
Fact number one is Wrexham has
to beat Forest Green Rovers.
Fact number two is that MK Dons need to lose or draw
against Mansfield Town as long as Wrexham wins
against Forest Green Rovers.
And fact number three is Barrow needs
to lose or draw against Gillingham as long as Wrexham
win against Forest Green Rovers and MK Dons
loses or draws against Mansfield Town.
All of these things need to happen for Wrexham
to have enough points that no other team
could bump them out of the automatic promotion spots.
If MK Dons or Barrow are victorious,
then Wrexham wouldn't be promoted this week.
Make sense?
Great.
SPEAKER: What do you think?
Should we go to this game or not?
I don't know.
It's almost mathematically impossible.
OK, next one then?
OK, we'll go to the next one, we'll go to the next one.
[dramatic music]
We need to look after our own house and everything else
will follow.
We're going up today, and if we don't,
I owe you a bottle of whisky.
I think we will.
SPEAKER: Any team in the top five can drop points.
SPEAKER: For the players, it's a lot of pressure.
We've had to grit it out.
It's going to be tough.
It would be nice to do it two years in a row, wouldn't it?
- Yeah, yeah. - After waiting so long.
SPEAKER: It's a big ask, to be fair.
And a few results have got to go our way out there.
That's not usually the Wrexham way.
Go on then, boys, eh?
Come on.
Yeah. Good.
OK.
Nothing, nothing gets handed to you.
And I really want a return.
We have got to earn it today with a level
of our fucking performance.
Nothing gets given.
Let's go and fucking play with hunger
and fucking a real fucking desire against these,
and fucking send them packing with fuck all.
Come on. - Come on, boys!
Come on! Let's fucking go.
Let's go.
Right from the start.
[crowd chanting]
Wrexham!
MARK: And out come the teams, Wrexham and Forest Green.
A terrific noise from the Wrexham fans.
And this could be a day of days for Wrexham.
But first and foremost, it is no given.
That's the truth of the matter.
Don't be deceived by Forest Green's
league position.
They are competitive.
Get out.
Come on, Wrexham!
MARK: And away we go.
Mullin pops it back.
Come on!
MARK: Here is Ryan Barnett with a long one.
Go on, Mulls.
MARK: And it's cleared over the top of Mullin, holding
it up on the right-hand side.
He's got a man, touch tight.
Holds him off well though, and lays off for Barnett,
who bursts past his man.
Shoots in the cross.
Good header and away by Keogh for a corner.
SINGER: ♪ I'm only heating up under the stars ♪
[crowd chanting]
SINGER: ♪ It's my time, go time, show time ♪
MARK Here comes the inswinger from O'Connor again.
And it's headed away from the keeper.
Mullin from a tight angle.
Snaps it back, and it's blocked on the line.
SINGER: ♪ Get on your feet ♪
[cheers and applause]
Get in there!
MARK: Valiantly, but brilliant from Mullin
to keep that alive.
[indistinct]
And Wrexham has a big lead
in this massive match.
Wrexham!
MARK: Lots of nervous fans here checking their phones.
They'll be looking at the other games
that could impact on us today.
ANNOUNCER: And here come MK Dons's Dean.
Oh, wow, what a goal that is.
And that's Dons for Mansfield.
MK Dons are up 1-0.
Jonny Williams with a determined run.
It's Williams saved by Farman.
Barrow living dangerously.
Gillingham nil, Barrow nil.
SPEAKER: At this point, the two games we need to go our
way are not going our way.
And Forest Green are facing relegation,
so they'll continue to fight.
♪ ♪
SINGER: ♪ Yeah, ah, we in this together ♪
♪ Yes, we all got something on the line ♪
♪ We all got something to defy ♪
♪ We all got something in the moment ♪
♪ To the fullest go and never satisfied ♪
Go then, and look.
MARK: Lee from deep cutting inside.
Wow. [laughs]
And now here's Lee.
Brings the edge out here, lays it wide.
McClean under the bar.
SINGER: ♪ Yeah, whatever it takes ♪
[crowd roaring]
♪ ♪
Cannon feeds it back to edge.
And O'Connell shakes it on target.
3-0!
♪ ♪
O'Connor swings it in.
O'Connell climbs.
Oh, can he flick it on?
Driven by, and it's 4!
Wrexham are having a ball.
[crowd chanting] Wrexham!
MARK: At halftime, we're feeling comfortably ahead
of Forest Green.
Now all eyes are on the other two matches that
will decide our fate today.
Here comes Andrews.
He's around the keeper.
He does and scores.
The Bluebirds trail, Gillingham 1, Barrow nil.
ANNOUNCER: And for Boateng, Hewitt-- goal!
Now then, 1-1, game on!
♪ ♪
MARK: So the live table looks rather tasty for us now.
Of course, we would be promoted
if the scores stay like this.
Ryan. [laughter]
I can't believe we're not there.
Fuck.
I mean, it wasn't like a sure thing, you know?
Yeah.
It was a kind of, yeah, it might happen, it might not,
you know, and you-- I mean.
ROB: Why do you think I'm sitting
in Los Angeles, California, and not in Wrexham, Wales?
[laughter]
MARK: And that's what this is.
OK. Call me later.
All right. Miss you, love you, bye.
He's literally shooting right now.
- [laughs] - Oh my God.
He said he's standing there--
I know the directors.
And I told him to give him a second.
And he's like, I'm staring at a camera right now.
MARK: We got the start that we wanted,
and we've got a really try to take advantage of that.
Barnett sweeps it in under the bar.
Easy clearance by Lee, who brings it down edge
of the area to tackle.
Mullin is there. Big block that.
Terrific block.
Mullin, I thought, was odds on to get his hat trick.
And he scored.
A block on the edge of the area by--
it was in there.
Oh, won back by McClean.
Wrexham attacking again now.
Lee brings it forwards.
Mullin edge of the area.
He hits a left-footed shot.
Easy take for the keeper.
There's a real celebratory atmosphere here.
Something's got off.
Masterson inside the penalty area.
Can he deliver? Oh, goal.
It's Gillingham 2, Barrow nil.
ANNOUNCER: There's a scramble inside the box.
Another shot. A third shot.
And he scores!
Mansfield lead by 2 goals to 1!
- Mansfield are winning. - By what?
Mansfield are winning 2-1.
So that's good?
- And Barrow losing. - So we're up?
Oh, dear Lord, we're up.
Oh, Jackie, how long do we got to go?
MARK: Still a long way to go in the other matches.
But we're looking at two goals.
Oh, Andy, you know, you should be tempting fate more.
Events are turning our way.
The crowd is really roaring.
This will stir the Wrexham players
to finish this game off.
Come on.
♪ ♪
[crowd chanting] Wrexham, Wrexham, Wrexham, Wrexham.
He's got space.
Swings it into the goal farther.
Barnett.
Yeah!
What a goal!
♪ ♪
What a goal.
♪ ♪
Everyone's cheering again.
What's happened elsewhere?
SPEAKER: It's official.
Gillingham beats Barrow 3-0.
And Mansfield got another goal to make it 3-1.
SPEAKER: You know what?
I don't want to tempt fate, but I think we're going up.
I think those 11,000 people around us might just be right.
There it is.
The fans are going mad here.
PAUL: I think when they got-- they took me off,
I turned around to the bench and was
asking the scores because we didn't actually
pay any attention.
Even at half time, the gaffer didn't mention it.
Nobody spoke about it.
OKONKWO: I think just a random fans right behind my goal,
asking what's the score.
And you know, they'll give me a number, like--
SPEAKER: I think it was Mansfield scored
to make it 3-1 that was sort of a Jesus Christ moment.
Like, I didn't expect that to happen today.
MARK: Crowd now, listen to this.
SINGER: ♪ Bring it out on stage ♪
McClean-- passes wide to McClean.
Goes in.
[crowd roaring]
He sets it.
At last he's got that first goal of the season.
Oh, I'm absolutely delighted for him.
Oh, yeah, he's going crazy down there.
Mansfield is up 4-1 against the MK Dons.
And unless they score three goals in 30 seconds,
we're promoted.
We're promoted.
MARK: For Wrexham, and now batting time away from
securing back-to-back promotions for the first
time in our history.
The noise here though, I've got to say.
Just listen to that.
I can barely hear you, man.
Yeah.
A day of days in Wrexham's history.
[whistle blows]
There is the final whistle.
It's happened!
The fans are on the pitch.
Wrexham win
and we are up!
Yes!
Whoo!
MARK: Fans from around the world
have played their part in this.
Wrexham Football Club, wow.
What a time to be alive, eh?
Yeah.
[laughs]
MARK: Back-to-back promotions.
This is special.
Drink it in.
Enjoy yourselves tonight, Wrexham fans.
Because you don't see back-to-back promotions
very often.
Oh my fucking God.
[laughter]
MARK: Mr. Reynolds, Mr. McElhenney,
I'm sure you're watching.
Can we just say, on behalf
of all Wrexham fans, thank you.
SPEAKER: Thank you so much.
SINGER: ♪ Ooh, I feel again ♪
♪ Yeah, with you, I can feel again ♪
♪ ♪
♪ Yeah ♪
[cheers and applause]
ALL: We are going, Wrexham, we are going up!
We are going, Wrexham, we are going up!
MARK: And here come the heroes.
[cheers and applause]
What a scene.
SINGER: ♪ Ooh, I can feel again ♪
♪ Yeah, with you, I feel again ♪
♪ ♪
♪ Yeah, with you ♪
♪ I feel better ♪
♪ I feel again ♪
We know what's next, don't you?
Back to back to back.
Oh, this town!
ROGER: Think it's a truly transformative achievement.
One season back in the football league,
you're moving up already another level,
back-to-back promotions for the first
time in the club's 159-year history.
We're back to where we were 20 years ago.
Been a long, hard slog, but what a fantastic season.
It was hard to think that we'd go
up twice and go back-to-back.
But the thing that Parkey's done with the club is amazing.
SPEAKER: You know, the town is united at the moment.
What's happening at the football club
is a catalyst for something, something a bit bigger.
I think we're suddenly becoming
the best versions of ourselves,
you know, because this, for me, is the best thing I've
been a part of for a while.
You know, it was a bit of an emotional day,
another-- another great day.
SPEAKER: It's a big step up to League One.
We're going to struggle.
We'll find out where we are in League One.
And I think, you know, a couple of players
coming to the end of long contracts,
you know, you could see them not being kept on.
SPEAKER: The planning for next season is ongoing.
There's a lot of work to be done in the summer.
We've got several players out of contract.
SPEAKER: We haven't ended up being here by chance.
You know, a lot of players going.
New players will be arriving.
But it's that continued evolution that the squad
has to go through.
It feels harsh and it's never the easiest few days,
but everybody who's been inside that dressing room
understands the journey the football club's on.
SPEAKER: The jump from League Two to League One
is a harder challenge than National
League into League Two.
And we've got to be prepared for that.
We've got to, as a group, make the right decisions
to keep the club progressing in the right direction.
SPEAKER: Yes, and so, last game of the season, Stockport,
there is a little bit of needle between Stockport and Wrexham.
Losing 5-0 at Stockport earlier in the season
was one of our sort of real shocks to the system.
Everyone wants a win today, but we've got the championship,
and that's what's most important.
MARK: And plenty for Wrexham to prove against Stockport,
not least carrying this rivalry into next season.
Go, Wrexham!
SPEAKER: We're going to tangle with these guys next year.
You know, beating them at home in front of our fans
seems like a great way to end the season.
SPEAKER: Today is my first time getting into the race
course ever.
I'm, you know, I'm scared of crowds.
I don't like loud noises.
The camera allows me--
it makes me feel like I'm allowed to be somewhere.
[crowd booing]
[chatter]
Just try and capture the general atmosphere.
Rob's going to be here, so I'll just stand around
with all these other people and just wait very, very patiently.
- Bye, y'all. - Rob!
Bye!
SPEAKER: Today is just about pride.
So it should be a belter of a match.
[crowd chanting]
Oh, Luke's-- Luke's starting.
So this Stockport game is going
to be the last game for some of these players
that they play or are involved with Wrexham.
MARK: And here we go.
♪ We have just kicked off Stockport ♪
MARK: For the tight press,
high up the pitch, and Eoghan O'Connell
gives it away.
Lovely footwork by Camps.
Gets past McClean down the right.
McClean's in. You won't catch him.
Fed in nicely.
Jumps on-- it's in!
It's in!
Stockport take the lead.
That was excellent work by Camps.
And chanting rings around the stadium.
[crowd chanting]
This is why I don't do crowds.
Going to Stockport.
Cannon wins it back.
The frantic start we'd expect.
Gone outside him and take three defenders with him.
Inside Young, he takes a touch.
Gets in the box.
Great dribble by Young.
And he tackles him.
And Palmer should have scored.
Oh my God.
Fucking hell.
How did that get saved?
Just kick the ball in the back of the net.
Please.
Palmer should have scored.
- Hi, Rob. - Hi.
- Brittney. - How are you?
Nice to see you again, Rob.
Nice to see you too.
How's it going over there, at Stok?
So happy.
At the end of the day, it feels like we're doing
cool shit with cool people.
Yeah, and that feels good.
That's what it feels like to us, too.
[laughs]
How did that get in there?
Now, this is-- thanks to the good people at Vistaprint
and Ryan Reynolds.
[laughs]
Has it started again?
Oh, yeah.
Wait!
Oh, we missed a goal.
So if you've been paying attention,
you know that making the sponsors feel good
is important, and I love Brittney,
but sometimes it gets in the way of the football.
[upbeat music]
MARK: Ollie Palmer slams it home.
What a pass from O'Connell.
[crowd chanting]
I didn't even know we restarted.
It came at horrible highs, and he
stooped and had to declare.
But that's a good ball by Young to Cannon,
helps out, then feeds it inside.
Now involved.
It's a three on three, and this time it's a big ball.
Cannon drills it.
Cannon slams it through Hinchcliffe's hands!
[cheers and applause]
Andy Cannon against his old club.
Yeah!
Andy Cannon scores a screamer.
They are celebrating up at the owner's box.
Upward bound, baby.
Come on, let's finish it out!
I'll call you later. Love you.
Bye.
MARK: Can we close off the season
by beating the champions?
This is the last game.
So, yeah, it's a very bittersweet occasion
for a lot of these guys.
You know, some, I think, are reaching
the end of their careers.
Some still have many more fruitful years to enjoy.
Some are just at the start of their careers.
MARK: Headed away to the edge of the box by Cleworth.
Evans tackled brilliantly by Young.
You know, Luke Young, he's been captain of this club.
He's been Player of the Season multiple occasions.
MARK: Look out behind Mateo.
Young hits it low.
It hits a defender. It's gone in.
I do want to be playing.
I do feel like I've got a few more years in me
left yet to regularly play.
And as much as I would love to stay and still
be a part of this journey, I'll have nothing
but praise to say about everything
involved with the club.
What a year to bow out and have that success behind you.
And Ben Tozer is on the bench, who's
been our captain for the last couple of seasons,
along with Luke, you know, was ever
present in that National League season
when we got promoted.
BEN: When I came to the club, my goal and ambition
was to get the club to League One
and play a massive part in doing that.
And to have achieved that, for me, it's incredible.
No bitterness whatsoever.
Just I understood my role off the pitch.
And I feel like I've done that well.
MARK: Okonkwo knocks it long.
And the 2023-2024 season ends.
Well done, boys. Well done.
Well done.
See you next year.
MARK: Wrexham beat the champions, Stockport County,
in a hell of a game.
And, of course, Stockport won't be going anywhere.
This rivalry is quite something.
[cheers and applause]
With that refresh of players that
happens every summer gets more difficult.
It gets more complicated.
And, you know, this summer is-- this
is the hardest because we're saying
goodbye to some absolutely central
figures in that success.
You know, people like Rob Lainton,
Jordan Tunnicliffe, Callum McFadzean, Aaron Hayden.
It's been a very memorable three years,
and I can now move on to my next chapter,
not in sadness, but in pride and happiness
of what I've achieved over my last few years at the club.
And I wish the club all the best for the future.
Also our star goalie, Arthur Okonkwo, his loan is over.
And we don't know where he's going to sign.
But the one thing for certain is all those
that players feel spoken to
can be really proud of the part
that they've played on this journey.
They will rightly wear the title of kind of legend here.
They will always be part of that double promotion team.
I hope that none of them will ever
have to buy a drink within a 100 mile radius of the stadium.
There's already been a couple of managers
that have rang me about all the players we've let go,
asking me about them as people.
And, obviously, there's-- they know
what they're like as players.
So there's going to be a lot of opportunities for them.
But, unfortunately, in football, you've got to evolve
and you've got to keep moving forward.
As a personal achievement, this is big.
Like, it feels great to have pushed past something.
My heart's like going.
We know every ending is not going to be
perfect for every player.
And this is a business where tough decisions
have to be made.
Regardless, starting a new chapter is hard.
Congrats, man.
Congrats. I'm so happy for you.
- I'm coming. - Yeah?
- Yeah. - Drinking?
Yeah, I just had two shots.
[laughter]
But so many of them will always
be a part of the great legacy that is Wrexham.
You've been here from the very beginning, man.
Nah
It's just, it's so incredible, so--
Yeah, see what's been to-- no, it's class.
I got to see you start playing.
Oh my God, I'm so happy.
[soft music]
♪ ♪
Just a toast to everybody here, the team behind the team
is so important.
I mean, you know, the success would not
have happened without the strength of the staff.
Cheers, everybody. Thank you very much.
Cheers.
Yes, so while the lads get sent to Vegas,
the coaching staff go on a wild,
barely controlled weekend
to Spain to play a lot of golf and start
talking about next season.
Did you go with them?
Yeah, I'm going to go on to that in a second.
You got invited to go to Marabella?
And I didn't?
Oh.
Did you pay?
[laughter]
We've come a long way, gentlemen.
But we've also got to evolve and improve the squad
because we're going into a very competitive division with a lot
of big clubs, a lot of clubs who've been in the championship
in recent years.
For me, it's about, from day one, when we get back, when Kev
starts testing the lads, they come
back fit, come back motivated.
We always say that the week is made by the result
of the weekend, isn't it? - Yeah.
So we're going to do everything
we can to win because it lifts everybody in Wrexham.
It lifts the staff. And that's our job.
And win-- it's about winning for me.
And that's what we've got to do.
SINGER: ♪ I do what it takes ♪
♪ Falling too fast to prepare for this ♪
♪ Trippin' in the world could be dangerous ♪
♪ Everybody circling this vulture biz ♪
♪ Negative, nepotist ♪
And what are your predictions for Wrexham in League One?
I'm going to say they're going to do it.
I do. I think they're going to do it.
SINGER: ♪ Whip, whip, run me like a racehorse ♪
It's a whole new world.
League One can be an absolute meat-grinder of a league.
We are going to have to fight
for every single point we get.
I don't think there will be too many 6-0s on the cards
for us next season.
SINGER: ♪ Whatever it takes ♪
The one thing you can't buy is momentum.
We've got positivity on our side.
We've got everybody believing we can be successful.
Can we go back to back to back?
Yes, we can.
SINGER: ♪ Whatever it takes ♪
It'll be harder for success next year,
but you never know, do you, with this club.
This is a dare-to-dream scenario.
RYAN: We're all in.
We want blood, and we want it now.
Let's go.
You know, the whole world is looking
at Wrexham at the moment.
It's an enormous amount of pride, not only to the club,
to the city.
The football has changed the city completely.
Not just on match days, on every day for every,
every single person in the community, whether they
follow football or not.
And the football has had an impact on their lives
one way or another.
Whoo!
ROB: League One is going to be a huge challenge for us.
But Wrexham has never and will never
back down from a challenge.
RYAN: They've overcome 15 years in the National League,
a terrible mining disaster, personal challenges,
economic issues.
And while Wrexham embraces its history,
it's always looking to the future.
No team at this level has ever gone back to back to back.
But it doesn't mean it can't be done.
I'm excited about League One.
SINGER: ♪ You take me to the top ♪
♪ I'm ready for whatever ♪
But I also think that there is enormous scope to fuck this
up beyond all recognition.
SINGER: ♪ I do what it takes ♪
ANNOUNCER: Fabulous, let's--
ANNOUNCER: See all those-- their kids have a game
of football on the pitch.
ANNOUNCER: Yeah, yeah.
Well, they're having a great old time,
aren't they, those guys?
And still those kids play on.
Some finish, oh, what a tackle that was.
You see that in front of the goal?
Oh, great work.
Look at that.
ANNOUNCER: Oh, challenge that was.
That is a proper-- that embrace tackle.
that is.
They all look about the same age.
ANNOUNCER: They do, don't they, eh?
ANNOUNCER: Future Wrexham players, guys.
Just playing football
for the fun of it.
And that's how it should be.
[child giggles, seagull cries]