In an ideal world, Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson admits, his side would be playing this weekend.
Lincoln City were the scheduled visitors for a League One match that was going to be broadcast live on both sides of the Atlantic.
However, in common with the majority of third-tier games due to be played on Saturday, the fixture has been postponed due to international call-ups.
This brings Wrexham into line with the Premier League and second-tier Championship, where no matches had been planned during a break that will see World Cup qualifiers played in some parts of the globe along with Nations League group games in Europe and Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
That, though, is little consolation to fans in north Wales and further afield wanting their football fix from The Racecourse this weekend.
So, why is the Wrexham game off?
EFL rules state clubs in Leagues One and Two (tiers three and four) with three or more players away on international duty can apply to have their game postponed until a later date, as otherwise they would have to field a weakened team.
Lincoln have had the requisite number of call-ups, including JJ McKiernan (Northern Ireland Under-21s) and Sean Roughan (Republic of Ireland Under-21s).
Tickets had been put on sale by both clubs last month but Saturday’s postponement was no big surprise, as Lincoln’s home game against Northampton Town in the September international break had already suffered the same fate.
Wrexham’s only international absentee this weekend would have been Jacob Mendy, named in the Gambia squad for their Africa Cup of Nations qualifying double-header against Madagascar.
Jacob Mendy is Wrexham’s only international call-up this weekend (Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
Is this the first time this has happened to Wrexham?
Postponements happen all the time, for different reasons. Last season, for instance, saw the trip to Forest Green Rovers called off on the morning of the match due to a waterlogged pitch. There was almost a repeat earlier this month away against Stevenage, where the game only got the go-ahead following a pitch inspection two or so hours before kick-off.
But, yes, this is the first time a Wrexham fixture has had to be moved due to international call-ups since their return to the EFL last year.
Playing when others had a Saturday off has proved worthwhile, too, with 2023-24 bringing victories over Doncaster Rovers, Salford City and Grimsby Town, before last month’s 3-0 win over Shrewsbury Town. Only last November’s 2-0 loss at Accrington Stanley blots the copybook during international breaks.
What are Wrexham’s views on the situation?
Mixed. Some believe the momentum of back-to-back wins for second-placed Wrexham would have brought another against Lincoln, who are fourth, while others recognise it has been a busy time, including two long trips to Leyton Orient, in east London, and Stevenage, in the capital’s northern commuter belt, in quick succession.
“Would we prefer to play the game?,” asks manager Parkinson. “Yes. But, once it was off, we had to utilise that time to our benefit. Training for those who need topping up and a bit of rest for others.”
Last Friday, for example, saw the return of the cryotherapy van Wrexham’s medical staff have employed in the past to ward off fatigue among the players and help recovery by exposing them to sub-zero temperatures. To follow that a week later with a few days off will do nobody any harm.
Phil Parkinson (Pete Norton/Getty Images)
Will the whole squad have the weekend off?
Yes, pretty much. Training will resume on Monday, with what is expected to be a demanding session. A similar workout was given last Wednesday to those players who had not featured against Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers’ under-21s side in the EFL Trophy the previous evening.
After that, the players were told to rest before their season resumes with three league games in eight days, two of them away, starting with next Saturday’s trip to Rotherham United. Following those, the FA Cup’s first round kicks off November.
Once the players are back, they can also expect a full-size practice game to make up for this blank weekend.
Parkinson explains: “You have to make sure there is bigger-pitch work in among the small-sided games, keep-balls and unit work. Just for the physical aspect of that. We’re always conscious when working with Kev (Mulholland, head of medical) and his staff of the need to analyse that data.”
Will the manager and staff also have a break?
Most will get the weekend off. Scouting duties, however, may eat into that time for a couple of them, with Parkinson likely to be at Peterborough United versus Rotherham in one of only two third-tier fixtures to survive this weekend.
“If a game is relevant, we’ll be there,” says the manager. “But there’s also a need for the staff and the analysts to press that ‘pause’ button. Chris (Johnson, the chief scout), Steve (Parkin, Parkinson’s senior assistant), everyone here works hard.
“There is a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes that people would be amazed at. Particularly, the detail that goes into preparing for each game.”
Parkinson and his staff did take advantage of the players being off towards the end of the week to conduct a full debrief of the season so far. This ranged from an analysis of set pieces for and against through to patterns of play with the ball and the approach of opposition teams in their games.
Should League One join the Premier League and Championship in closing down during an international break?
Considering 10 of the 12 games in this division have been postponed this weekend and nine went during the previous international break last month, Parkinson feels such a question is warranted.
He says: “It does feel to be reaching the stage where you think, ‘Should football shut down as a whole?’. That way, everyone is on a level playing field in terms of fitting games in. There’s definitely a case for that to happen. But, equally, we played (Shrewsbury) last time and benefited from that.”
When will the Lincoln fixture be played?
The EFL encourages clubs to rearrange postponed games for as near to the original date as possible, in an attempt to prevent potential fixture pile-ups later in the season should there be a spell of bad weather over the UK’s winter months.
But things have been complicated because Lincoln already had to find a date for last month’s Northampton postponement, with October 29 being chosen for that one.
With another international break to come in November (when Lincoln may well again lose three players to call-ups, and so be allowed to postpone another fixture — this time, their visit to Exeter City), there aren’t an abundance of potential midweek slots available in the immediate future.
The stands at Wrexham will be silent this Saturday (Jess Hornby/Getty Images)
Any other business?
As stated above, there’s a third international break of the season in the middle of next month, when Wrexham are scheduled to travel to Stockport County on Saturday, November 16.
However, with Stockport versus Wycombe Wanderers being among the games postponed this weekend after the home side had Ibou Touray (Gambia), Tayo Adaramola (Republic of Ireland Under-21s) and Lewis Fiorini (Scotland Under-21s) called up for international duty, there’s a chance of another blank weekend for Parkinson and company.
Much may depend on the final round of qualifying for the Under-21s European Championship, with the Republic of Ireland and Scotland both sitting second in their respective groups going into this week’s decisive double-header.
With six of the nine final runners-up meeting in next month’s play-offs (the other three go straight through to next summer’s finals alongside all nine group winners), Stockport’s Adaramola and Fiorino could be in international action again in the midweek either side of that scheduled meeting with Wrexham. And with Touray likely to be in the Gambia squad to face Comoros and Tunisia, it would mean another Saturday off for Parkinson and his side.
(Top photo: Jess Hornby/Getty Images)
