Wrexham brushed aside the challenge of National League South leaders Yeovil Town, winning 3-0 at the STōK Cae Ras to set up an Emirates FA Cup Third Round tie against Shrewsbury Town.
Just under eight months after Wrexham had relegated the Glovers from the National League, Phil Parkinson’s men repeated the same scoreline thanks to goals from Ollie Palmer, Andy Cannon and Sam Dalby.
One is beginning to sound like a broken record, but Cannon was once again a live wire in the first half, as the Red Dragons had the unusual task of kicking towards the STōK Cold Brew Coffee Stand first.
Similar to his assist for Paul Mullin against Morecambe, Cannon whipped in a cross to Palmer, whose header was confusingly punched back by goalkeeper Joe Day for Palmer to gobble up the rebound.
Cannon’s exploits didn’t stop there, as he thumped a volley forward from an almost identical position to his earlier cross. The ball thudded into the turf and meandered its way through the Yeovil box, breaking through the crumbling hands of Day to double the lead for Wrexham; a day to forget with the gloves for the Glovers keeper.
The two goals continued our strong record of scoring in the first half in recent weeks, however the visitors weren’t without their chances in the first 45.
Frank Nouble had a dipping volley just go over in the 29th minute from close range, before Charlie Cooper stung the hands of an outstretched Mark Howard five minutes later from the edge of the box.
To add to this, Jordan Young kissed the outside of Howard’s post from a free-kick in the 44th minute, and so Cannon’s goal on the stroke of half-time came at a crucial moment in the game, as the Glovers would be left to rue their missed chances.
There was to be no Harrogate-esque fightback from the visitors, as Wrexham managed the game with comfort in the second half.
Opportunities for the Red Dragons primarily came through direct drives forward from the midfield, highlighted by James Jones in the 72nd minute, who was allowed to breeze through to the edge of the Yeovil box and sling a shot just wide of Day’s post.
Despite being the joint highest scorers in their league, Yeovil just couldn’t muster up any attempts on the Wrexham goal towards the end of the game.
As they committed more men forward, Wrexham would have more chances on the break, and this all culminated in Sam Dalby scoring his second Emirates FA Cup goal of the season in as many games.
James McClean’s through ball was grossly misinterpreted by centre back Jake Wannell in the dying embers of the game, allowing Dalby to course through into the Yeovil D. Spotting Day off his line in no-man's land, Dalby chipped the ball past the keeper to have it teasingly bounce twice before crossing the line.
The 3-0 victory was comfortable in the end, with Wrexham’s class shining through and Yeovil Town thinking what if of their chances at 1-0 down.
As was drawn before the game, Wrexham will now have an away fixture against Shrewsbury Town in the Third Round, as the old foes meet for the first time in 15 years.
Attention will now quickly turn to the Bristol Street Motors Trophy though, as Wrexham will welcome Burton Albion to the STōK Cae Ras tomorrow for the Round of 32.