Ryan Reynolds hails ‘generous’ Ben Foster gesture that helped Wrexham unearth transfer gem en route to back-to-back promotions

Former England international Foster stepped out of retirement at the age of 40 to help the Red Dragons over the line in their record-breaking National League title triumph – with some telling contributions made during the closing stages of the 2022-23 campaign.

The veteran goalkeeper agreed to stay on for another season, but sensationally quit after conceding 14 goals through 360 minutes at the start of the 2023-24 season. Foster will always be fondly remembered at SToK Racecourse, with Reynolds telling series three of the ‘Welcome to Wrexham’ documentary of seeing a colourful character walk away: “I thought it was generous. Like, it was an incredibly generous thing to do. So few people know when to call it, you know. I have an immense amount of respect for Ben and who he is as a player and a person. He's a huge reason we're here in the EFL.”

Foster said of hanging up his gloves for the last time, with a 5-5 draw against Swindon – in which he conceded four first-half goals – proving to be the final straw: “Even though we'd drawn, the lads were quiet and they weren't happy because they knew something was wrong. They knew that the performance wasn't what it should be. And this might sound selfish but I was thinking just about my own circumstance at that moment in time. Because, I knew enough was enough, and I knew I was done. And I was thinking about how to tell the manager, how to tell the coaching staff. And I was just thinking 'What shall I do? Shall I do it now? Shall I ring somebody tomorrow? Shall I tell them on Monday?' I thought, 'No, I'm just gonna go tell them.' Went into the coaches room and I said, 'That's me done lads. That's me done. I'm letting you down. I'm not up to speed. I'm not what I thought I am. And I don't want to keep letting you down’.”

That decision ended up working in Wrexham’s favour as it forced them back into the transfer market. They ended up taking Arthur Okonkwo on loan from Arsenal, with the 22-year-old keeping 14 clean sheets as Phil Parkinson’s side claimed a runners-up finish in League Two – with efforts now being made to keep him in North Wales as the promising shot-stopper prepares to hit free agency.