One Wrexham player did himself justice in disappointing 0-0 Wigan draw, his incredible stat line proves it

Wrexham’s 0-0 draw with Wigan Athletic at the Brick Community Stadium was an incredibly difficult one to stomach for fans.

The stalemate, coupled with Wycombe’s late win over Stevenage thanks to a goal from Caleb Taylor, ensured that Wrexham‘s lead in the race for the final automatic promotion spot in League One was cut to just a single point.

Phil Parkinson was keen to insist that Wrexham are in a position that they’d have ‘took all day’ heading into the final four games of the 2024/25 campaign. However, fans will have been left rather worried about the level of performance against Wigan, with the Welsh outfit failing to register a single shot on target throughout the 90 minutes.

At the other end of the pitch, Wrexham’s defenders did at least look solid once again, with Eoghan O’Connell particularly impressing with an all-action outing.

Eoghan O’Connell registers impressive stat line in Wigan 0-0 Wrexham

O’Connell deservedly earned player of the match accolades and an 8/10 rating for what was a fantastic performance in the 0-0 draw.

While his attacking teammates struggled, O’Connell ensured that Wrexham wouldn’t leave the Brick Community Stadium empty-handed by completing a whopping 25 defensive actions at the heart of Parkinson‘s back three.

22 of those defensive actions were clearances, while the Republic of Ireland national also made a block, an interception and a last man tackle to prevent John Mellish from scoring early in the first half.

The centre-back also kept Dale Taylor and Maleace Asamoah Junior under lock and key throughout the game, winning all 13 of his duels with the Wigan forwards.

• READ MORE: Three winners and two losers from Wrexham’s League One clash with Wigan Athletic

O’Connell highlights what will get Wrexham over the line in promotion race

The 29-year-old has been one of Parkinson’s most-trusted players throughout the 2024/25 season, playing in 38 of Wrexham’s 42 League One games thus far.

He was similarly important during the League Two promotion-winning campaign last season, and speaking in an interview recently, O’Connell was keen to stress how the experience Wrexham have of getting over the line in tight races may give them the edge over Wycombe Wanderers:

“It’s in our own hands in the run-in, but we won’t take that for granted,” said O’Connell.

“Any victory at this stage of the season is a big victory, especially after Tuesday night. In the end it turned out to be a good point but we didn’t want to lose momentum. Just to win today is huge.

“I suppose it’s a swing, but a few weeks ago we were beaten by Leyton Orient and it was the end of the world. The best thing we’ve done at this stage over the last few years is never get carried away by one result, and we will look to keep doing that.

“We’re enjoying it but we’ll enjoy it even more if we finish the job.”

Wrexham face two tricky games over the Easter weekend, welcoming Bristol Rovers to the STōK Cae Ras before travelling to face Blackpool on Easter Monday.

Phil Parkinson comments on Wrexham’s position in League One promotion race after 0-0 draw

Wrexham dropped points at Wigan Athletic on Saturday afternoon, leaving Phil Parkinson with plenty of work to do in the League One promotion race.

Last Saturday afternoon, the sun was out at the STōK Cae Ras, and Wrexham fans were dreaming of the Championship.

Wrexham’s win over Burton Albion opened up a six-point gap to Wycombe Wanderers in the race for second place.

Just over a week later, that lead is down to just one point after Wycombe beat Huddersfield Town and then Stevenage.

Wrexham only drew at Wigan Athletic on Saturday afternoon, stumbling to a 0-0 stalemate at the Brick Community Stadium.