2023-24 Prediction League; Game 18 v Wrexham AFC home)

[Div3North]

Accrington Stanley

V

Wrexham AFC

2023/24 Prediction League Game 18 v Clwb Pêl-droed Wrecsam

Well what could possibly follow “unbeaten in four” except “not won in four”; we are, after all, The Stanley ….. not been a good three weeks (two League defeats, and a draw and a loss in the Cup) and a deep depression is settling in over Hyndburn and other parts ……. and if Mr Valairian doesn’t stop being the only player to predict a Stanley defeat each week and then being correct in said predictions (and thus the only player scoring any points), I have it on good authority that Mrs Mad is going to go round and give him a slap …….. He has been warned!

Welsh Wrecks’em, eh? Isn’t it. Look you. Eisteddfod. Out of the League since 2008, currently lying second with four wins in five (so have Mansfield and Crewe (who stuffed Derby away on Tuesday), while Stockport have won eleven on the bounce, including a 5-0 demolition of Wrexham on 23rd September); owned by Wrexham Holdings LLC (co chairman are Debbie Reynolds and some Yank). Oggy oggy oggy …….

SO: a Welsh Starter for Ten, isn’t it ……….. depending who you believe, and how you define things, there are either four or five Welsh sides in the EFL Pyramid ………. if it’s four, they’re Cardiff, Swansea, Newport (for whom my brother Rupert played scrum ‘alf, as immortalised in song) and Wrexham ………… but if it’s five, who is the fifth team?

Wrexham is - since 2022 - a city, and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough. It’s located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire. Historically in the county of Denbighshire, and later the county of Clwyd in 1974, it has been the principal settlement of Wrexham County Borough since 1996. It was likely founded prior to the 11th century and developed in the Middle Ages as a regional centre for trade and administration. The city became the most populous settlement in Wales in the 17th century, and was at the forefront of the Industrial Revolution from the 18th century. Prior to de-industrialisation in the 20th century, the city and surrounding area were a hub of coal and lead mining, the production of iron, steel and leather, and brewing.

The local Welsh nobility and peasantry backed the uprising led by Owain Glyndŵr against King Henry IV of England during the early 15th century. Local poet Guto'r Glyn (c. 1412 – c. 1493) heralded Siôn ap Madog, the great-nephew of Owain Glyndŵr, as 'Alecsander i Wrecsam' ("an Alexander for Wrexham" - a sort of Welsh version of “A Gordon for me”), and the poet Hywel Dafi addresses Siôn's heir as 'Gwregys am ais Gwregsam wyt' ('a girdle around the heart of Wrexham’) Lovely!

The Acts of Union passed during the reign of Henry VIII brought Wrexham into the full system of English administration and law. It became part of the new shire of Denbighshire*in 1536.

In 1584 St Richard Gwyn, a local Recusant, schoolteacher, and poet in the Welsh-language, was convicted of high treason based on his Catholic beliefs by a panel of judges headed by the Chief Justice of Chester, Sir George Bromley. On 15 October 1584, Gwyn was taken to the Beast Market and hung, drawn and quartered for his faith. He was canonised by Pope Paul VIin 1970 as one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales. His Feast Day is 17 October (damn, missed it again)

Famous Wrexonians include Judge George Jeffreys, always referred to as “The Hanging Judge”; during the “Bloody Assizes” that followed the collapse in July 1685 of the Insurrection of James Scott, Duke of Monmouth, His Judgeship prosecuted the rebels with ferocity, executing perhaps 150 to 200 persons and ordering hundreds of others sold into slavery in the colonies. (At the same time, he profited by extorting money from the victims, although what for isn’t recorded): nevertheless, James II made him Lord Chancellor in September 1685. When William of Orange (later King William III), overthrew King James’ government in December 1688, Jeffreys tried to escape from the country disguised as a sailor, but he was arrested and died four months later in the Tower of London (where he’d seemingly been placed “for his own protection”). Flying pigs!

Other Wrexsonian “names” include Andy Scott, guitarist with the 1970s Glam Rock band “The Sweet”, David Bower, a deaf actor who played David, the younger brother of Charles (Hugh Grant), in “Four Weddings and a Funeral”, loads of poets, Professors, soldiers, busybodies and actors, plus Robbie Savage (anyone know how Macc are doing this season?), Mark Hughes, and Dennis Taylor (he of the upside-down spectacles) ….. interestingly, the Freedom of the City has been awarded to the Royal Welsh Regiment, The Royal Welch Fusiliers, 101 Force Support Battalion of REME, and The Welsh Guards ……. individual recipients are limited to Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney (2013), whose Freedom-worthy contribution appears to be limited to buying Wrexham AFC!

Second Starter for Ten; what is the (approximate) distance of the longest headed goal in professional football, and who scored it?

Wrexham AFC was formed in October 1864 by members of the Wrexham Cricket Club who wanted a sporting activity for the winter months. The club initially participated in friendlies and cup competitions, and first entered a league by joining The Combination in 1890. It spent 13 seasons there and two seasons in the Welsh Senior League, winning four Combination titles and two Welsh Senior League titles. They entered the Birmingham & District League in 1905, where they stayed until becoming inaugural members of the Football League's Third Division North in 1921.

They spent 37 years in the Northern section until they were placed in the re-organised Third Division in 1958, and then relegated two years later. Wrexham were promoted out of the Fourth Division in 1961–62, only to be relegated again two years later. Another promotion followed in 1969–70, and they reached the Second Division for the first time after winning the Third Division title in 1977–78. Two successive relegations saw the club back in the fourth tier by 1983, and it saw no further promotion until 1992–93. Relegated once more in 2002, it gained immediate promotion in 2002–03, before worsening financial problems resulted in another relegation and then administration in December 2004. It took 18 months for the club to exit administration and the club's decline on the pitch continued, as it dropped out of the Football League in 2008.

They subsequently had five unsuccessful play-off campaigns in the fifth tier of the English football league system, before being promoted as champions of the 2022–23 National League, with 34 wins in 46, 116 goals (+75) and 111 points ………….. Wrexham AFC is - after Sheffield, Cray, Hallam, and Notts County - the fifth oldest association football team, the third oldest professional club and the oldest in Wales. Their first game was played on 22 October 1864 at the Denbighshire County Cricket Ground (The Racecourse) against the Prince of Wales’ Fire Brigade. Didn’t know he had one ……

The Club Mascot is Wrex the Dragon; he, along with the team nickname "The Dragons", was introduced in 2001–02 by the Commercial manager following a ballot of fans to help increase sponsorship and promote the club's Welsh image whilst also providing a more original nickname, as Bristol City, Swindon Town and Cheltenham also use the nickname of 'The Robins'. 'Wrex' has a bright red face and a Wrexham F.C. shirt wearing the number 1864 (that’s a hell of a squad!). Famous Managers include Ken Barnes (Man City wing half), 211-game ex Man U striker Jack Rowley, Dixie McNeil, Dean Saunders, Bryan Hughes (ex Stanley), Bryan Flynn, Brian Little; current gaffer is Phil Parkinson ……… they also played in the Cup-Winners’ Cup eight times, reaching Round 3 in 1975/76 before losing to Anderlecht, and in 1990/91 they had the honour of being eliminated by Man U (5-0 over two legs)

Highest League win is 10-1 v Hartlepools Utd (as they then were) in 1962 (3rd March!); biggest loss was 9-0 at Brentford the year after; highest goal-scorer is Tommy Bamford (175, including 16 hat-tricks); most appearances is 713 by Arfon Griffiths; and Andy Morrell once scored seven times in a game (against Merthyr Tydfil in 2000) ………… they used to play at the Racecourse Ground, but now they play at STōK Cae Ras where - I assume - they do Stock Car Rasing (think about it!) ….. happily, it’s the same place ………..

In August 2011, Wrexham were faced with being expelled from the Football Conference, but fans rallied and raised £127,000 in one day to help pay a bond, so they could secure football for the forthcoming season. A month later the Wrexham Supporters' Trust (WST) took over day-to-day running of the club. Fan ownership of Wrexham was finally ratified on 12 December 2011.

As of May 2015 the WST had 4,129 adult members and joint-owners of the club …. and they bought the Racecourse Ground (where they’ve played since 1864) in June 2022

Third Starter for Ten; overall, there have been 60+ different scores in the top four EFL divisions (10-4, 6-6 and so on) over the years; every possible permutation of 13 goals, for example, has happened at least once. One of the earlier “unusual” scores was in 1892, when Aston Villa beat “Team X” in the League by a score of 12-2 ……….. but who were “Team X”?

Twelve of the squad were released in the summer (and Ben Foster retired again early in the season); only five signed on, being CB Will Boyle from Huddersfield, LM Irishman James McClean from Wigan, GK Liam Hall from Bradford PA, Millwall DMF George Evans, and free agent Scottish striker Steven Fletcher (Hibs, Wolves, The Owls and Dundee) … Currently they’re second in League Two - P 17 W9 D6 L2 GF34 GA27 for 33 points - five behind Stockport and one ahead of still-unbeaten Mansfield; at home, it’s W6 D2 L1 (1st game of the season, when MK Donuts did them 5-3 in Taffyland); away games are W3 D4 L1 (5-0 at Stockport) ………. consequently, if you score 5 against Wrexham (I wish!) you’re going to win - if you don’t count the 5-5 draw at home to Swindon ….. They beat unbeaten Mansfield 2-1 away in the FA Cup, and have Yeovil at home next, and went out of the EFL Cup on pens at home to Bratfud; they went through their Trophy group with 3 wins from 3 (next opponents To be discussed

Deadline for entries is, as always, scheduled kick off time, which is 3.00pm on Saturday 18th November …….. I might have to do a Valairian this week, I think ……. and if the EFL Pyramid means what it says (not just the League leagues) then Merthyr Town (who play in the 7th tier Southern League Premier Division) are the fifth team; all five are eligible to play in English Leagues because when the teams were formed, there were no Welsh competition alternatives, and thus they were permitted to participate in the English league structure.

And in 2011, Odd played Tromso in the Norwegian League; Odd thumped the ball up field, and a Tromso defender headed it back into Odd’s half; standing a couple of yards inside his own half, Odd's defender Jone Samuelsen then aimed to head it back to an attacking colleague, but missed him, and the ball flew down field, bounced five times (including over the GK), and nestled in the net …. it’s on YouTube, and worth a look; estimated distance is 57 metres!

And - couldn’t you guess - “Team X” was Accie1 - Aston Villa 12 Accrington 2 ………..

Good luck to everyone! …… Keep the Faith! …….. Thanks for playing! …. And Oggy Oggy Oggy to you all!

[teach]

Stanley to lose 2-1

[Watchdog]

1-1 Draw

[ossy kid]

Stanley to win 2-1 and same again next week at Bradford please.

[choirboy]

Stanley 2-1 Wrexham for me please.

[Greger]

(Sadly) Stanley 1 Wrexham 3 for me.

[Tom D]

Stanley to win 1-0

[AccyMad]

Narrow 1 nil win for Stanley please (after all they haven't got the REAL Paul Mullin )

[MikeA]

1-1 please

[Kiwi Johnny]

3-0Stanley. Thank you.

[Chimer]

I'm remembering the game that kickstarted our first season back, and hoping for a repeat. 5-0 Stanley, look you

[VALAIRIAN]

At the risk of being slapped - but I am not on my own in predicting a loss - I think that we are going to lose....

Too many players out - I think, we do not know, as we never do until one hour before kickoff.......

Stanley 1-4 Wrexham......

[choirboy]

Originally Posted by choirboy

Stanley 2-1 Wrexham for me please.

So, now that news has come out that the match is a ‘Sell Out’ I would like to change my prediction to ……….5,326.
Great news that there has been over 3,000 tickets ‘sold to Stanley supporters’ as Wrexham were provided with 2,300!…hmmmmm?

[VALAIRIAN]

Wrong thread my friend

[Div3North]

A Valairian, I fear ………..

Stanley 2 Wrexham 4