‘Be careful what you wish for’ – Rob McElhenney relives Paul Mullin pain & baptism of fire that saw Wrexham ‘thumped’

McElhenney, along with fellow co-chairman Ryan Reynolds, has enjoyed plenty of success since completing a stunning takeover at SToK Racecourse. It has not been all plain sailing in North Wales, though, with a Wembley defeat, play-off heartache and baptism of fire in the Football League added to the pot.

Wrexham did return to the EFL in record-breaking style at the end of the 2022-23 campaign, as they captured the National League title, but a pre-season trip to the United States saw star striker Paul Mullin pick up an untimely injury before then suffering a 5-3 hammering by MK Dons on what was supposed to be a day of celebration for a club that was growing accustomed to getting what it wants.

McElhenney has told The Athletic of overcoming adversity alongside the triumphs – with every moment being caught on camera for the ‘Welcome to Wrexham’ documentary series: “The beginning of the season did not go to plan. Not when you have your superstar striker, who the team is built around, suffers a punctured lung and broken ribs, meaning he can’t leave the United States and see his family. That was a very big moment of adversity for Paul, most importantly, and his family. But also the club. We then wind up back at the Racecourse (for the opening game against MK Dons). Let the coronation begin. And we get absolutely thumped! I’m pretty sure the first episode will be titled something like, ‘Welcome to the EFL, be careful what you wish for…’. But that is what is so compelling about sport. It is a living organism. There is no end. There was a beginning; that was in 1864 (when Wrexham were formed), so we are right in the middle of the story. We believe we are just a new chapter in the beginning of something great. But what will make season three so compelling is you don’t know how we are going to fare.”

Season three of Welcome to Wrexham has been confirmed, with the Red Dragons in the process of piecing together another promotion push in League Two. Phil Parkinson’s side sit fourth in the table at present, but are within touching distance of the top three and recently went 11 games unbeaten across all competitions.