Phil Parkinson says Wrexham’s promotion clash with Wycombe Wanderers only resumed after confirmation the supporter involved in a medical emergency was in a “stable” condition on the way to hospital.
Play was halted for almost 50 minutes late in the second half at Adams Park after fans frantically alerted the authorities to a problem in the away end.
Both teams were then taken from the field by referee Ben Speedie as the fan was treated by medics next to the pitch, flags being held up to provide a degree of privacy. Fans in nearby seats were also asked to move.
Once the supporter had left for hospital by ambulance shortly before 5.10pm, the players returned to the field. A ten-minute warm-up then followed before play resumed, Wrexham going on to snatch a precious victory via a deflected shot from Sam Smith.
“Our thoughts are with the supporter and his family,” says Parkinson. “We’ve been told he is in a stable condition and that’s the most important thing.
We are all so proud of the lads and their massive win. But our hearts go out to our supporter who was rushed to the hospital. Wishing them the
the best of recoveries.❤️🩹 🏴 Up the Town.
— Rob McElhenney (@RMcElhenney) March 15, 2025
“Terrible when something like that happens. Football pales into insignificance. A traumatic time for everyone. It was only when we found out that he was in a stable condition and on the way to hospital that both sets of players wanted to come out and continue the game.
“We waited until then to have a team-talk, too. We didn’t know at that stage if the game was going to go ahead. It certainly wouldn’t if our supporter wasn’t stable. We had a little chat with the lads and what character they showed in those final 20 minutes.”
Victory allowed Wrexham to leapfrog Wycombe into second place. It was also the perfect response to a testing few days after Tuesday’s dismal defeat at Reading had led to renewed questions from supporters as to why talisman Paul Mullin was no longer featuring.
The 30-year-old was again absent at Adams Park after failing to make the matchday squad for the eighth time in nine league matches.
Rumours have been swirling around Wrexham as to why Mullin has fallen out of favour, including suggestions of a bust-up with Parkinson and the striker then going direct to owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.
A fan posted this theory out on X before kick-off at Wycombe but Mullin moved quickly to rubbish the suggestion, with a tweet from his own account reading: “Nonsense.”
Mullin has been Wrexham’s goalscoring talisman since joining the club on a free transfer from Cambridge United in 2021. He finished as top scorer in each of the last three seasons, also picking up a hat-trick of Player of the Year awards.
He has netted 110 goals for the club, putting him seventh in the all-time list of scorers. However, this season has been a different story with Mullin scoring just three goals in 26 appearances, 17 of which have come from the bench.
With Parkinson now having seven senior strikers at his disposal following the January addition of Jay Rodriguez and record signing Smith, Mullin has dropped down the pecking order alongside Ollie Palmer, who last featured in a league squad seven weeks ago.
(Top photo: Jasper Wax/Getty Images)
