224-487: William Henry Meredith (30 July 1874 – 19 April 1958) was a Welsh professional footballer . He was considered one of the early superstars of football due to his performances, notably for Manchester City and Manchester United . He won each domestic trophy in the English football league and gained 48 caps for Wales , for whom he scored eleven goals and won two British Home Championship titles. His favoured position
448-443: A long ball , who then beat goalkeeper Dai Davies to score the only goal of the game; Bolton supporters long maintained that Meredith had been offside . As captain, Meredith was handed the trophy by Prime Minister Arthur Balfour . He scored ten goals in 35 games in the 1904–05 season, as City came within two points and two places of champions Newcastle United . The season ended in controversial circumstances at Villa Park . With
672-464: A namesake club in Uganda , Wrexham F.C. Uganda, established in 2009, created by Welsh charity Teams4U. Wrexham has a fierce rivalry with Chester ; the two contest the cross-border derby . The clubs are located just 10 miles apart, but are Welsh and English respectively. The first match was held in 1888 with Wrexham running out 3–2 winners at Faulkner Street, the former home of Chester City ;
896-412: A pit pony driver at the age of 12. His family were Primitive Methodists , and Meredith himself remained a lifelong teetotaller . He spent eight years working in the mines and worked during a tough time for the industry, enduring a 25% pay cut which led to strike action in 1893; this experience helped to shape his political views, which would become significant later in his life. An interest in football
1120-628: A stele of c. 375–400 BCE in the National Archaeological Museum of Athens appears on the UEFA European Championship trophy. Athenaeus , writing in 228 CE, mentions the Roman ball game harpastum . Phaininda, episkyros and harpastum were played involving hands and violence. They all appear to have resembled rugby football , wrestling , and volleyball more than what
1344-399: A 2–1 home loss to Brentford on 3 May 2005. The 10-point deduction proved decisive in determining Wrexham's fate, as the club finished with 43 points compared to 20th-placed Milton Keynes Dons ' 51 – a net points tally of 53 after deduction, which had condemned them to relegation. In October 2005, Birmingham High Court decided that Alex Hamilton's company CrucialMove had improperly acquired
1568-515: A 2–2 draw with Ireland on 16 March 1895 in Belfast . He won 12 caps in the 1890s. Still, he was forced to miss six games as his club would not let him play in games that clashed with league fixtures. Wales could compete with Ireland but were regularly beaten by Scotland and England . On 26 March 1900, Wales played for the first time in South Wales, at Cardiff Arms Park , and Meredith scored
1792-478: A 3–2 defeat to Aston Villa ending any hopes of winning the league, Sandy Turnbull and Villa captain Alex Leake exchanged blows. The Football Association launched an investigation into the violence , and the findings shocked the sporting world as Meredith was suspended for the entirety of the 1905–06 season for (unsuccessfully) attempting to bribe Alex Leake. No evidence was taken from Meredith, who denied
2016-525: A 4–0 home victory over Derby County , and "led the field that day" by dribbling the ball almost the whole length of the pitch before launching a powerful shot that settled into the corner of Jack Fryer's net. The Athletic News reported that "for real brilliance the right-wing [Meredith and Ross] took the biscuit". First Division defences managed to limit Meredith's contribution in the 1900–01 campaign by singling him out for rough treatment, though Liverpool manager Tom Watson felt compelled to write
2240-493: A French XI team in 1920, and also made up most of the England team against a Scottish Ladies XI in the same year, winning 22–0. Despite being more popular than some men's football events, with one match seeing a 53,000 strong crowd in 1920, women's football in England suffered a blow in 1921 when The Football Association outlawed the playing of the game on association members' pitches, stating that "the game of football
2464-484: A Wrexham’, but not everybody can." During the 2022–23 season, the team progressed to the fourth round in the 2022–23 FA Cup , being the only National League team to do so, beating Coventry City in an upset in the third round, and eventually being knocked out by Sheffield United in a replay. The first game against Sheffield United, which ended in a 3–3 draw, was ESPN 's most followed football game across its digital platforms. Wrexham vied with Notts County throughout
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#17327723023592688-604: A barracks town meant that the team could secure the services of many famous guest players such as Stanley Matthews , Stan Cullis , and others. In the first post-war season Wrexham equaled their best-ever position when they again finished third in the Third Division North. In the summer of 1949, the club made its first-ever tour abroad when it played three games against the British army in Germany. The club reached
2912-469: A beverage company owned by Blake Lively , for the 2023–24 season. Since 1864, Wrexham have played their home games at The Racecourse Ground, situated on the Mold Road, which is the main through road heading into Wrexham; it is opposite the residential area of Maesgwyn, situated between Wrexham University and Wrexham General railway station . In August 2011 Wrexham University purchased the stadium and
3136-442: A caution ( yellow card ) or dismissal ( red card ). A second yellow card in the same game leads to a red card, which results in a dismissal. A player given a yellow card is said to have been "booked", the referee writing the player's name in their official notebook. If a player has been dismissed, no substitute can be brought on in their place and the player may not participate in further play. Misconduct may occur at any time, and while
3360-574: A competitive game, and involved the kicking of a mari , a ball made of animal skin. In North America, pasuckuakohowog was a ball game played by the Algonquians ; it was described as "almost identical to the kind of folk football being played in Europe at the same time, in which the ball was kicked through goals". Phaininda and episkyros were Greek ball games. An image of an episkyros player depicted in low relief on
3584-505: A deadlock; some competitions may invoke replays . A game tied at the end of regulation time may go into extra time, which consists of two further 15-minute periods. If the score is still tied after extra time, some competitions allow the use of penalty shoot-outs (known officially in the Laws of the Game as "kicks from the penalty mark") to determine which team will progress to the next stage of
3808-424: A goal down when Meredith provided Enoch West with a cross which West sent into the net for the equalising goal. Four more goals came and they won the game 5–1 and left the field as champions of England for the second time. Meredith played in the 1911 FA Charity Shield , as United beat Swindon Town 8–4 at Stamford Bridge. However, the 1911–12 campaign ended in a disappointing 13th-place finish, and Mangnall left
4032-400: A goal has been scored or not; this was brought in to prevent controversy. Video assistant referees (VAR) have also been increasingly introduced in high-level matches to assist officials through video replays to correct clear and obvious mistakes. There are four types of calls that can be reviewed: mistaken identity in awarding a red or yellow card, goals and whether there was a violation during
4256-533: A goal to earn the Welsh a celebrated 1–1 draw with England. After serving his suspension, he returned to Wales for the British Home Championship title victory in 1907 , the nation's first success in the competition. In those three games, he scored against Ireland in a 3–2 victory and captained Wales to a 1–0 win over Scotland and a 1–1 draw with England. Wales were denied a late penalty against
4480-530: A hat-trick against Chesterfield Town . Maley found him a suitable inside-right partner in Jimmy Bannister , who was unselfish in his play and willing to feed the ball through to Meredith. He also played Sammy Frost at half-back, who was able to win the ball and bring Meredith into the play, and signed outside-left Frank Booth to balance the attack. Maley encouraged teamwork, meaning there was less pressure on Meredith from opposition defenders. Meredith
4704-685: A large proportion of the team. All the Meredith brothers played football, but Sam , two years older than Billy, was the first to make an impression. He left Chirk to attempt a professional career and went on to play for Stoke City as a full-back. Meredith made his debut for the Chirk first team in September 1892. The club played in The Combination , a league which contained a mixture of town clubs and reserve teams of clubs from big cities. At
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#17327723023594928-640: A latex bladder for pressurisation, but modern balls at all levels of the game are now synthetic. As the Laws were formulated in England, and were initially administered solely by the four British football associations within IFAB , the standard dimensions of a football pitch were originally expressed in imperial units . The Laws now express dimensions with approximate metric equivalents (followed by traditional units in brackets), though use of imperial units remains popular in English-speaking countries with
5152-487: A letter to Manchester City denying that a Liverpool director had stated that "all that the opposition had to do was watch Meredith – the rest are no good". He finished the season with just seven goals in 35 appearances. Meredith found the net eight times in 37 games in the 1901–02 campaign, as City were relegated back out of the First Division. The club's secretary, Sam Ormerod , selected 29 different players as
5376-529: A meeting attended by representatives from Eton , Harrow , Rugby , Winchester and Shrewsbury schools. They were not universally adopted. During the 1850s, many clubs unconnected to schools or universities were formed throughout the English-speaking world to play various forms of football. Some came up with their own distinct codes of rules, most notably the Sheffield Football Club , formed by former public school pupils in 1857, which led to
5600-597: A minority stake in Necaxa. The academy was awarded Category Three status as an EFL academy from the 2024/25 season. The football club joined the European Club Association in August 2024. The 2024–25 season began with the first League One match in 19 years and with the 5000th recorded league match for the club, winning at home 3-2 to Wycombe Wanderers . The Allyn family of Skaneateles, New York
5824-582: A packed Racecourse, Wrexham went on to win the Third Division Championship that year. In the 1978–79 season Wrexham made it to the fourth round of the FA Cup, where they lost to Tottenham Hotspur 3–2 in the replay after the first game finished 3–3. The Spurs team had stars amongst their ranks such as Ossie Ardiles , Ricky Villa , and Glenn Hoddle , and Wrexham were bested in getting knocked out. Following Arfon Griffiths' resignation from
6048-609: A pair of plaques dedicated to Meredith in his home village of Chirk ( Cymraeg : Y Waun): one at Chirk AAA FC's home ground; the other in Millennium Gardens at the Station Avenue entrance to the park and cricket ground. The latter was unveiled in 2002 by Billy's daughter Winifrede. Chirk Manchester City Manchester United Wales Notes Bibliography Association football Association football , more commonly known as football or soccer ,
6272-426: A penalty kick. Other markings define the position of the ball or players at kick-offs , goal kicks, penalty kicks and corner kicks. A standard adult football match consists of two halves of 45 minutes each. Each half runs continuously, meaning that the clock is not stopped when the ball is out of play. There is usually a 15-minute half-time break between halves. The end of the match is known as full-time. The referee
6496-496: A poor mistake from the Brighton goalkeeper. He played both games against Cardiff City in the next round, a 0–0 draw at Maine Road and 1–0 win at Ninian Park , and claimed an assist in the goal that settled the tie. His last match was against Newcastle United in the semi-finals at the age of 49 years and 245 days, making him City's oldest ever player ; the game ended in a 2–1 defeat. Meredith won his first cap for Wales in
6720-517: A poor run of results. He was replaced by coach Brian Carey . Wrexham finished 19th in League Two with 51 points after an impressive late run of form which saw them win 4 out of their last 5 games, which included defeating local rivals Shrewsbury in the last derby match at Gay Meadow. Wrexham's league status was saved on the last day of the season with a vital 3–1 victory on 5 May 2007 over Boston United at home which sent their opponents down to
6944-416: A relatively recent history of metrication (or only partial metrication), such as Britain. The length of the pitch, or field, for international adult matches is in the range of 100–110 m (110–120 yd) and the width is in the range of 64–75 m (70–80 yd). Fields for non-international matches may be 90–120 m (100–130 yd) in length and 45–90 m (50–100 yd) in width, provided
Billy Meredith - Misplaced Pages Continue
7168-598: A run through the FA Cup. Having beaten Stockport County and Rotherham United, they faced Premier League side Ipswich Town at the Racecourse, with Wrexham running out 2–1 winners thanks to goals from Gary Bennett and Kieron Durkan . In the next round, Wrexham was drawn away to Manchester United and despite taking the lead at Old Trafford , United went on to win 5–2. The 1995–96 season once again saw Wrexham in European action, with their opposition this time coming in
7392-555: A shrewd signing when he enlisted the services of Gary Bennett, who soon settled and helped Wrexham into the promotion race. Wrexham's season came to a head on 27 April 1993 when with two games left they traveled to Northampton Town requiring a win to gain promotion to the next tier of English football. The game ended with a 2–0 victory to Wrexham and the 5,500 travelling "Reds" supporters there were jubilant when promotion had finally been achieved. The 1994–95 season would see Wrexham achieve more success in cup competitions, this time going on
7616-535: A significant impact on the club's visibility, leading to its acquiring a new global fanbase with no precedent for a team who were then in the fifth division. The club was formed in October 1864 by members of the Wrexham Cricket Club who wanted a sporting activity for the winter months. This makes them (after Sheffield , Cray , Hallam , and Notts County ) the fifth oldest association football team,
7840-576: A similar ancient game ( cuju , or tsu chu ) was played by women during the Han dynasty (25–220 CE), as female figures are depicted in frescoes of the period playing tsu chu . There are also reports of annual football matches played by women in Midlothian , Scotland, during the 1790s. Association football, the modern game, has documented early involvement of women. In 1863, football governing bodies introduced standardised rules to prohibit violence on
8064-679: A small fee on top of his expenses. Northwich were a struggling side who withdrew from the Football League at the end of the 1893–94 season after finishing bottom of the Second Division . The club won just three league matches; Meredith featured in each win. Back at Chirk, Meredith gained his first honour as part of the team that beat Westminster Rovers to win the 1894 Welsh Cup. Meredith also played for Wrexham in 1894, sharing his talents between them, Chirk and Northwich Victoria that year. Meredith's performances for Northwich gained
8288-551: A tally of 111 points that season, a record for the top five divisions of English league football, beating Notts County to the championship and single automatic promotion spot. The team participated in the inaugural The Soccer Tournament in June 2023 where they were eliminated by Conrad and Beasley United in the round of 16. On 5 August 2023, Wrexham played their first Football League match in 15 years, losing at home to MK Dons . Wrexham AFC's income increased to over £10 million in
8512-664: A top-flight team in the FA Cup, this time in the shape of Middlesbrough . The final score of the match was 2–1, with the second-half goals coming from Robin Gibson and Darren Ferguson after being behind the Premiership outfit. Wrexham went on to win the FAW Premier Cup in May 2001. At the start of the 21st century, the club was dogged with many problems off the pitch, including then chairman Alex Hamilton, attempting to get
8736-527: A total match time of 90 minutes. With an estimated 250 million players active in over 200 countries and territories, it is the world's most popular sport. The game of association football is played in accordance with the Laws of the Game , a set of rules that has been in effect since 1863 and maintained by the IFAB since 1886. The game is played with a football that is 68–70 cm (27–28 in) in circumference . The two teams compete to score goals by getting
8960-513: A truce to the nation's civil war in 2006 and it helped further reduce tensions between government and rebel forces in 2007 by playing a match in the rebel capital of Bouaké , an occasion that brought both armies together peacefully for the first time. By contrast, football is widely considered to have been the final proximate cause for the Football War in June 1969 between El Salvador and Honduras . The sport also exacerbated tensions at
9184-432: A variety of positions in which the outfield (non-goalkeeper) players are strategically placed by a coach, these positions are not defined or required by the Laws. The basic equipment or kit players are required to wear includes a shirt, shorts, socks, footwear and adequate shin guards . An athletic supporter and protective cup is highly recommended for male players by medical experts and professionals. Headgear
Billy Meredith - Misplaced Pages Continue
9408-402: A young Jackie Sheldon . By this time, Meredith made headlines primarily due to his squabbling with the club over them stalling payment of his benefit matches and his dissatisfaction at being dropped. The club dropped to 14th spot in 1913–14 and only avoided relegation on the last day of the 1914–15 season after bribing Liverpool to lose 2–0 at Old Trafford; Meredith this time played no part in
9632-415: Is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players each, who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a ball around a rectangular field called a pitch . The objective of the game is to score more goals than the opposing team by moving the ball beyond the goal line into a rectangular-framed goal defended by the opposing team. Traditionally, the game has been played over two 45-minute halves, for
9856-403: Is a man's livelihood and he does more than others for his employer, why is he not entitled to better pay than others? So far as I can make out, the sole reason why the best footballers in England are prevented from earning better than men of lesser ability and experience is purely sentimental." — Meredith made a passionate and eloquent case for abandoning the maximum wage. Meredith organised
10080-468: Is governed by FIFA . Under FIFA, there are six continental confederations: AFC , CAF , CONCACAF , CONMEBOL , OFC , and UEFA . Of these confederations, CONMEBOL is the oldest one, being founded in 1916. National associations (e.g. The FA in England) are responsible for managing the game in their own countries both professionally and at an amateur level, and coordinating competitions in accordance with
10304-410: Is marked by the goal line, two lines starting on the goal line 16.5 m (18 yd) from the goalposts and extending 16.5 m (18 yd) into the pitch perpendicular to the goal line, and a line joining them. This area has a number of functions, the most prominent being to mark where the goalkeeper may handle the ball and where a penalty foul by a member of the defending team becomes punishable by
10528-438: Is not a required piece of basic equipment, but players today may choose to wear it to protect themselves from head injury. Players are forbidden to wear or use anything that is dangerous to themselves or another player, such as jewellery or watches. The goalkeeper must wear clothing that is easily distinguishable from that worn by the other players and the match officials. A number of players may be replaced by substitutes during
10752-405: Is positioned on each goal line, midway between the two touchlines. The inner edges of the vertical goal posts must be 7.32 m (24 ft) apart, and the lower edge of the horizontal crossbar supported by the goal posts must be 2.44 m (8 ft) above the ground. Nets are usually placed behind the goal, but are not required by the Laws. In front of the goal is the penalty area. This area
10976-816: Is quite unsuitable for females and should not be encouraged." Players and football writers have argued that this ban was, in fact, due to envy of the large crowds that women's matches attracted, and because the FA had no control over the money made from the women's game. The FA ban led to the formation of the short-lived English Ladies Football Association and play moved to rugby grounds. Women's football also faced bans in several other countries , notably in Brazil from 1941 to 1979, in France from 1941 to 1970, and in Germany from 1955 to 1970. Restrictions began to be reduced in
11200-506: Is recognisable as modern football. As with pre-codified mob football , the antecedent of all modern football codes , these three games involved more handling the ball than kicking it. Association football in itself does not have a classical history. Notwithstanding any similarities to other ball games played around the world, FIFA has described that no historical connection exists with any game played in antiquity outside Europe. The history of football in England dates back to at least
11424-576: Is the oldest club in Wales and the third-oldest professional association football team in the world . They compete in EFL League One , the third level of the English football league system . The Welsh team initially participated in friendlies and cup competitions and first entered a league by joining The Combination in 1890. The team spent 13 seasons in the Combination and two seasons in
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#173277230235911648-593: Is the dominant region in women's football, with the United States winning the most FIFA Women's World Cups and Olympic tournaments. Europe and Asia come second and third in terms of international success, and the women's game has been improving in South America. Association football is played in accordance with a set of rules known as the Laws of the Game . The game is played using a spherical ball of 68–70 cm (27–28 in) circumference, known as
11872-455: Is the official timekeeper for the match, and may make an allowance for time lost through substitutions, injured players requiring attention, or other stoppages. This added time is called "additional time" in FIFA documents, but is most commonly referred to as stoppage time or injury time , while lost time can also be used as a synonym. The duration of stoppage time is at the sole discretion of
12096-435: Is thought to have been borrowed from the slang of Rugby School . Initially spelt assoccer (a shortening of "association"), it was later reduced to the modern spelling. This form of slang also gave rise to rugger for rugby football, fiver and tenner for five pound and ten pound notes , and the now-archaic footer that was also a name for association football. The word soccer arrived at its current form in 1895 and
12320-404: Is to score goals; defenders , who specialise in preventing their opponents from scoring; and midfielders , who dispossess the opposition and keep possession of the ball to pass it to the forwards on their team. Players in these positions are referred to as outfield players, to distinguish them from the goalkeeper. These positions are further subdivided according to the area of the field in which
12544-421: The football (or soccer ball ). Two teams of eleven players each compete to get the ball into the other team's goal (between the posts and under the bar), thereby scoring a goal. The team that has scored more goals at the end of the game is the winner; if both teams have scored an equal number of goals then the game is a draw. Each team is led by a captain who has only one official responsibility as mandated by
12768-463: The 1894–95 season with 12 goals in 18 appearances, just three strikes behind top-scorer Pat Finnerhan , who had played an extra 12 games. Meredith finished as top scorer in his first full season at Manchester City. He was appointed club captain in his second season at the club, aged just 21. The club finished as Second Division runners-up in 1895–96 , but were denied promotion after heavy defeats to West Bromwich Albion and Small Heath in
12992-464: The 1909 FA Cup final , knocking out Brighton, Everton , Blackburn Rovers , Burnley and Newcastle United . Their cup final opponents at Crystal Palace were Bristol City , captained at centre-half by Billy Wedlock – England captain and staunch opponent of the Players' Union . A Sandy Turnbull goal settled the tie, which was described as quite a boring game; Meredith himself dismissed reports of
13216-466: The 1922–23 campaign, playing the club's final game at Hyde Road . He played four FA Cup and two First Division games in the 1923–24 season. Mangnall, now his manager at City, shocked Manchester when he selected Meredith for the cup game with Brighton & Hove Albion at the Goldstone Ground , but was vindicated with a 5–1 victory; Meredith also scored a goal, though this was due to
13440-508: The 2013–14 season in 17th place. In 2018–19 , Wrexham finished in 4th place but lost the play-off quarter-final to Eastleigh . In 2019–20 , the club finished 19th on points per game after the season was ended early due to the COVID-19 pandemic , the lowest position in the club's 150-year history. In November 2020, Canadian-American actor Ryan Reynolds and American actor Rob McElhenney , through their RR McReynolds Company LLC, bought
13664-536: The 2022 FA Trophy final which they lost 1–0 to Bromley . Following the takeover, a docuseries called Welcome to Wrexham was announced to be in production for FX with Boardwalk Pictures . The series debuted on 24 August 2022 on FX and Hulu in the United States, followed by a release on Disney+ in the United Kingdom and Ireland the next day. The acquisition by Reynolds and McElhenney and
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#173277230235913888-593: The Bradford City stadium fire in May 1985, legislation on ground safety at all football grounds was brought into effect. This eventually led to the closure of the Mold Road stand because it did not reach the necessary safety standards. Led by Dixie McNeil, Wrexham reached the Fourth Division play-offs in 1989, having finished seventh in the league. Wrexham beat Scunthorpe United in the semi-final 5–1 on aggregate, but narrowly lost to Leyton Orient 2–1 in
14112-527: The Caribbean and Oceania regions (except Australia ) have yet to make a mark in international football. When it comes to men's national teams, Europeans and South Americans continue to dominate the FIFA World Cup, as no team from any other region has managed to even reach the final. These regional trends do not hold true for the women's game, as the United States women's national team has won
14336-531: The Conference Premier and ensured that Wrexham would stay in the Football League . Expectations were high for the 2007–08 season, with fans expecting a promotion push. However, the season started badly with the club in 24th by November 2007. Brian Carey was eventually sacked, and on 15 November 2007, Brian Little was named as Wrexham's new manager and the replacement to Carey, who took
14560-460: The Conference Premier play-off final , their first two appearances at Wembley Stadium in the club's 150-year history to date, and within five weeks of one another. In the FA Trophy final, Wrexham won on penalties after a 1–1 draw with Grimsby Town . A 5–2 aggregate win over Kidderminster Harriers in the two-legged play-off semi-final saw Wrexham through to the final versus Newport County ,
14784-698: The European Cup Winners' Cup by winning the Welsh Cup, Wrexham played their inaugural match in Europe against Swiss side FC Zurich in Switzerland on 13 September 1972, the game finishing 1–1. In the return leg, Wrexham won 2–1, advancing to the second round with a 3–2 win on aggregate. The second round drew Wrexham against Yugoslav side Hajduk Split . Over the course of two games, the score finished 3–3 on aggregate with Wrexham matching their more illustrious opponents, but they were knocked out of
15008-612: The Flintshire towns of Mold , Buckley , Holywell and Deeside . For the 2013 FA Trophy final coaches of Wrexham fans came from many North Wales towns including; Bala , Bangor , Caernarfon , Colwyn Bay , Denbigh , Flint , Llandudno , Prestatyn , Rhyl and Ruthin . Additionally, many Wrexham fans reside in Shropshire . Exiled supporters clubs can be found in South Wales , Manchester and London . Over
15232-569: The General Federation of Trade Unions (GTFU). The result of the vote, a decisive "no" to GFTU support, effectively supported the FA's position that professional footballers were fundamentally different from workmen in other industries. Meredith resumed league football in November 1909, bemoaning his view that "many players refuse to take things seriously and continue to live a kind of schoolboy life". He married Ellen Negus in 1901, and
15456-459: The Gunners 2–1 after being behind, with a thunderous Mickey Thomas free kick and a Steve Watkin goal. They lost in the next round to West Ham United 1–0 in a replay after the first game had finished 2–2. In an attempt to change the fortunes of the club after several seasons in the doldrums at the bottom of the football league pyramid, the 1992–93 season saw Wrexham manager Brian Flynn make
15680-504: The Racecourse Ground , is the world's oldest international stadium that still continues to host international games. The record attendance at the ground was set in 1957 when the club hosted a match against Manchester United in front of 34,445 spectators. The 2020 purchase of the club by Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds and American actor Rob McElhenney and the attendant publicity from the docuseries Welcome to Wrexham had
15904-767: The Welsh Cup a record 23 times, the Football League Trophy in 2005 at the Millennium Stadium and the FA Trophy in 2013 at Wembley Stadium . The club is also the record winner of the short-lived FAW Premier Cup , winning it five times out of the 11 years of its tenure, participating against fellow Welsh clubs such as Cardiff City , Swansea City and Newport County . However, their biggest rivalries are with English clubs Chester , Shrewsbury Town , and Tranmere Rovers , with games between
16128-415: The Welsh Cup after 16 years, entering at the third round stage. New manager Andy Morrell guided Wrexham to a record tally of 98 points but this was not enough to gain automatic promotion, as they ended the season only 5 points adrift of Fleetwood Town, who gained the only automatic place. Wrexham lost in the play-offs to Luton Town again. Wrexham earned themselves places in both the FA Trophy final and
16352-643: The Welsh FA , Manchester City and Manchester United all agreed to cover the cost of upkeep on a new headstone. Meredith is honoured in the hall of fame at the City of Manchester Stadium . It was announced in August 2007 that Meredith was one of the ten new inductees for 2007 to the English Football Hall of Fame . There is a street in Manchester named Billy Meredith Close in his honour and there are
16576-602: The Welsh Senior League , winning four Combination titles and two Welsh Senior League titles. It entered the Birmingham & District League in 1905, where it would remain until becoming an inaugural member of the Football League's Third Division North in 1921. It spent 37 years in the Northern section until it was placed in the re-organized Third Division in 1958 and then relegated two years later. Wrexham
16800-454: The test matches . After the departure of strike partner Pat Finnerhan to Liverpool in March 1897, Meredith remained as City's star player. His new partner for the 1897–98 season was William Smith (known as "Stockport Smith" to differentiate him from another William Smith in the team), whilst Billie Gillespie was placed at centre-forward. Meredith provided Gillespie with many crosses into
17024-524: The 1877–78 season, the FAW inaugurated the Welsh Cup competition, to run on similar lines to the English FA Cup . The first Welsh Cup final was played at Acton Park . Wrexham got to the final of the inaugural competition, where they defeated Druids F.C. 1–0, with James Davies being credited with the goal. Because of a lack of money at the fledgling FAW, Wrexham did not receive their trophy until
17248-480: The 1926 picture The Ball of Fortune , playing himself as a football trainer; the film received generally positive reviews. In 1928, together with former colleague Charlie Roberts , he became a coach for the ambitious but short-lived Manchester Central . Meredith's son-in-law, former City captain Charlie Pringle , was a player. He retained a passion for football and spent much of his retirement discussing
17472-571: The 1960s and 1970s. The Italian women's football league was established in 1968. In December 1969, the Women's Football Association was formed in England, with the sport eventually becoming the most prominent team sport for women in the United Kingdom. Two unofficial women's World Cups were organised by the FIEFF in 1970 and in 1971 . Also in 1971, UEFA members voted to officially recognise women's football, while The Football Association rescinded
17696-592: The 2004–05 Football League Trophy by defeating Southend United 2–0 after extra time, in Wrexham's first appearance at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff . The winning goals were scored by Juan Ugarte and Darren Ferguson as Wrexham ran out winners in front of nearly 20,000 Wrexham fans. Wrexham still retained an outside chance of escaping the drop in the 2004–05 season following an end-of-season winning streak; however, their faint hopes of staying up were ended with
17920-508: The English, and Meredith was later recorded to have said, "Never mind, little Wales will win some day [against England]. May I be there at the death." After draws with Ireland and Scotland, Meredith "wept unashamedly" as he helped Wales to beat England 2–1 at Highbury to claim the 1920 British Home Championship . It was only his second victory against the English in 20 attempts, marking the last of his 48 caps. Though his record number of caps
18144-576: The FIFA Women's World Cup four times, more than any other women's team. Football is played at a professional level all over the world. Millions of people regularly go to football stadiums to follow their favourite teams, while billions more watch the game on television or on the internet. A very large number of people also play football at an amateur level. According to a survey conducted by FIFA published in 2001, over 240 million people from more than 200 countries regularly play football. Football has
18368-471: The Football Association insisted that all players agree to leave the union and pledge loyalty to the FA. Manchester United refused to issue the revised contracts to its players, and the FA suspended the entire squad. The club then refused to pay the players in lieu of their suspension, and so the players instead took away ornaments from the club's office before Mangnall persuaded them to return
18592-838: The Football Association, the Scottish Football Association , the Football Association of Wales , and the Irish Football Association . FIFA , the international football body, was formed in Paris in 1904 and declared that they would adhere to the Laws of the Game of the Football Association. The growing popularity of the international game led to the admittance of FIFA representatives to the IFAB in 1913. The board consists of four representatives from FIFA and one representative from each of
18816-488: The Football League after an extremely disappointing season. John Neal was appointed manager of Wrexham in 1968, succeeding Alvan Williams who had brought Neal to the club as his assistant. He guided the club to a 9th place finish in 1969, before leading Wrexham to their second Football League promotion in 1970 with a second place finish and promotion to the Third Division. With Welsh clubs now able to qualify for
19040-467: The Game while the ball is in play. The offences that constitute a foul are listed in Law 12. Handling the ball deliberately, tripping an opponent, or pushing an opponent, are examples of "penal fouls", punishable by a direct free kick or penalty kick depending on where the offence occurred. Other fouls are punishable by an indirect free kick . The referee may punish a player's or substitute's misconduct by
19264-475: The IFAB Laws. Each team consists of a maximum of eleven players (excluding substitutes ), one of whom must be the goalkeeper . Competition rules may state a minimum number of players required to constitute a team, which is usually seven. Goalkeepers are the only players allowed to play the ball with their hands or arms, provided they do so within the penalty area in front of their own goal. Though there are
19488-430: The Laws of the Game in connection with the match to which he has been appointed" (Law 5), and whose decisions are final. The referee is assisted by two assistant referees . In many high-level games there is also a fourth official who assists the referee and may replace another official should the need arise. Goal line technology is used to measure if the whole ball has crossed the goal-line thereby determining whether
19712-748: The Laws of the Game. The most prestigious senior international competitions are the FIFA World Cup and the FIFA Women's World Cup . The men's World Cup is the most-viewed sporting event in the world, surpassing the Olympic Games . The two most prestigious competitions in club football are the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Women's Champions League , which attract an extensive television audience worldwide. The final of
19936-479: The Laws of the Game: to represent their team in the coin toss before kick-off or penalty kicks . The primary law is that players other than goalkeepers may not deliberately handle the ball with their hands or arms during play, though they must use both their hands during a throw-in restart. Although players usually use their feet to move the ball around, they may use any part of their body (notably, "heading" with
20160-637: The National League. In June 2022, Wrexham AFC purchased the Racecourse Ground freehold from the university and are planning renovations to the stadium. The maximum capacity as of the 2024/25 season is 13,341 due to an expanded temporary Kop. In August 2011, Wrexham were faced with being expelled from the Football Conference , fans rallied and raised £127,000 in one day to help pay a bond, so they could secure football for
20384-529: The Polish side Stal Rzeszow 3–1 on aggregate. Wrexham played Belgian champions Anderlecht in the quarter-finals and narrowly lost 2–1 to the eventual winners of the competition. The 1976–77 season saw Wrexham again beat First Division opposition in both Cup competitions as they went on another cup run, defeating Tottenham Hotspur in the Football League Cup and Sunderland in the FA Cup. However,
20608-480: The United States. A notable exception is New Zealand, where in the first two decades of the 21st century, under the influence of international television, "football" has been gaining prevalence, despite the dominance of other codes of football, namely rugby union and rugby league . The term soccer comes from Oxford "-er" slang, which was prevalent at the University of Oxford in England from about 1875, and
20832-580: The Volunteer Fire Brigade). In these early years, Wrexham were leaders of the campaign to restrict teams to having just 11 players on the pitch at any one time. In 1876, the newly formed Football Association of Wales saw Wales play their first international match , against Scotland at The West of Scotland Cricket Club , Partick , featuring Edwin Cross and Alfred Davies as the first of many Wrexham F.C. players to play for Wales. In
21056-616: The amateur principles the sport was founded on, but Meredith felt that these words rang hollow considering that club directors and shareholders made vast profits. At the first annual meeting in December 1908, the PU stated their aims as to allow unlimited wages, the right to transfer from club to club, and for players to take a percentage of any transfer fee. With the union threatening strike action, particularly at international matches, in April 1909,
21280-603: The attendant publicity from Welcome to Wrexham had a significant impact on the club's visibility, leading to its acquiring a new global fanbase with no precedent for a team in the fifth tier. The club's fortunes began to attract dedicated coverage from global sporting media that would not typically be afforded teams outside the Premier League. This, in turn, inspired a debate about the potential replicability of this strategy for other lesser-known clubs and leagues, with The Guardian remarking that "everybody wants to ‘do
21504-415: The attention of several other clubs in the Football League . Bolton Wanderers full-back Di Jones , a former Chirk player, spoke with him about a possible move. Still, Bolton secretary J.J. Bentley felt Meredith was too inexperienced and his frame too slight. Lawrence Furniss , an official at Ardwick , had first noticed him while refereeing a Northwich match. Meredith also played in both meetings between
21728-459: The badge and two dragons, one on either side of the badge and facing inwards. This is still the badge for today's team. This season also saw Wrexham reach the quarter-finals of the FA Cup in another cup run. After victories over Shrewsbury Town , Rotherham United , Middlesbrough , Crystal Palace and Southampton, their cup run finally came to an end with a loss to first division side Burnley at Turf Moor , with 15,000 Wrexham fans present to watch
21952-540: The ball and sending him a pass down the flank. The best teams he played in also had a centre-forward able to make the most of his accurate crosses. "I have devoted myself to football, and I have become a better player than most men because I have denied myself much that men prize ... They congratulate me and give me caps but they will not give me a penny more than men are earning in the reserve team, some of them perhaps do not trouble themselves to improve themselves and don't worry about taking care of condition. If football
22176-452: The ball into the other team's goal (between the posts, under the bar, and fully across the goal line). When the ball is in play, the players mainly use their feet, but may also use any other part of their body, such as their head, chest and thighs, except for their hands or arms, to control, strike, or pass the ball. Only the goalkeepers may use their hands and arms, and that only within the penalty area . The team that has scored more goals at
22400-460: The ban that prohibited women from playing on association members' pitches in England. Women's football still faces many struggles, but its worldwide growth has seen major competitions being launched at both the national and international levels, mirroring the men's competitions. The FIFA Women's World Cup was inaugurated in 1991: the first tournament was held in China, featuring 12 teams from
22624-410: The beginning of each playing period with a kick-off until the end of the playing period, the ball is in play at all times, except when either the ball leaves the field of play, or play is stopped by the referee. When the ball becomes out of play, play is restarted by one of eight restart methods depending on how it went out of play: A foul occurs when a player commits an offence listed in the Laws of
22848-485: The beginning of the Croatian War of Independence of the 1990s, when a match between Dinamo Zagreb and Red Star Belgrade degenerated into rioting in May 1990. Women's association football has historically seen opposition, with national associations severely curbing its development and several outlawing it completely. Women may have been playing football for as long as the game has existed. Evidence shows that
23072-448: The bid. A third bid later came in, but after WST and Booth came to an agreement, their bid was then re-accepted. In April 2011, the club was served with a winding-up order from HMRC, with an unpaid tax bill of just under £200,000. The team finished the 2010–11 season in 4th place, qualifying for a playoff spot, but were beaten 5–1 on aggregate by Luton Town in the semi-final. During the 2011–12 season, Wrexham were invited back into
23296-404: The box, picking up numerous assists as Gillespie outscored Meredith by 19 goals to 12. Meredith also mentored the slightly younger Gillespie, steering him away from drinking sessions by taking him along on fishing trips. The final match of the season saw Meredith score his first hat-trick for the club in an emphatic 9–0 win against Burton Swifts . "Oh I wish I was you Billy Meredith I wish I
23520-404: The buildup, direct red card decisions, and penalty decisions. The ball is spherical with a circumference of between 68 and 70 cm (27 and 28 in), a weight in the range of 410 to 450 g (14 to 16 oz), and a pressure between 0.6 and 1.1 standard atmospheres (8.5 and 15.6 pounds per square inch ) at sea level. In the past the ball was made up of leather panels sewn together, with
23744-750: The champions of these two club competitions would contest the Intercontinental Cup to prove which team was the best in the world. In the 21st century, South America has continued to produce some of the best footballers in the world, but its clubs have fallen behind the still dominant European clubs, which often sign the best players from Latin America and elsewhere. Meanwhile, football has improved in Africa , Asia and North America , and nowadays, these regions are at least on equal grounds with South America in club football, although countries in
23968-494: The charge, and the evidence was not made public. The club, fearful of FA sanctions, refused to pay Meredith during the campaign. He was transfer listed in May 1906 after he claimed that he had only attempted to bribe Leake on the orders of manager Tom Maley and that illegal payments were common practice at Hyde Road. The FA acted on his information, and fined Manchester City £ 900 for illegal payments and suspended numerous players, boardroom members and staff members. You approve of
24192-521: The close season was late signing Jimmy Ross , a veteran forward who Meredith considered to be his "favourite hero". Meredith claimed 30 goals in 34 games, including hat-tricks against Grimsby Town , Loughborough , Darwen and Barnsley . Meredith scored City's first goal in the First Division on the opening day of the 1899–1900 season in a 4–3 defeat to Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park on 2 September. Seven days later he claimed two goals in
24416-482: The club and all its assets. Had the club still been in administration by 3 June then Wrexham would have automatically been expelled from the League because of their financial situation. Wrexham Football Club (2006) Ltd is the name of the "phoenix" company that took over the assets of the old Wrexham Association Football Club Limited – technically, the club is no longer known as Wrexham Association Football Club due to
24640-477: The club evicted from the stadium so that he could use and sell it for his own development purposes – the saga involved the sale of the Racecourse Ground to a separate company owned by Hamilton immediately after he became the club's chairman. The club was included in FIFA Football 2004 for the first time and remained playable up to FIFA 08. In the summer of 2004, Hamilton gave the club a year's notice to quit
24864-560: The club owed £2,600,000, including £800,000 which was owed to the Inland Revenue in unpaid taxes. Wrexham became the first League club to suffer a ten-point deduction under the new rule for being placed in administration, dropping them from the middle of the League One table to the relegation zone after the point deduction, and subsequently condemned Wrexham to relegation. Despite their financial troubles, Wrexham went on to win
25088-550: The club slumped to defeat in 13 of the opening 20 games. Ormerod was forced to step down as new business figures took control behind the scenes and began to sign promising young Scottish players. New manager Tom Maley was more willing than his predecessor to confront Meredith over his tendency to stray out of position and attempt to dominate the City attack. City won immediate promotion as Second Division champions in 1902–03 , with Meredith scoring 23 goals in 35 appearances and claiming
25312-461: The club to exit administration and the club's decline on the pitch continued, as it dropped out of the Football League in 2008. Wrexham subsequently had five unsuccessful play-off campaigns in the fifth tier of the English football league system , before being promoted as champions of the 2022–23 National League to EFL League Two . On 13 April 2024, the club secured a second consecutive promotion to EFL League One . Wrexham's honours include winning
25536-401: The club to manage rivals Manchester City . Meredith's Benefit match was played on 7 September 1912 between Manchester United and Manchester City, and the Welsh FA also donated the proceeds of two trial matches to the fund. There were 39,911 spectators and a total of £1,400 was raised. New manager John Bentley led United to a fourth-place finish in 1912–13 . He dropped Meredith to blood
25760-465: The club training facilities in Gresford , adding their name to the stadium for it to become The Glyndŵr University Racecourse Stadium (Glyndŵr University was the name of Wrexham University at the time). Subsequently, in 2016, Wrexham Supporters Trust secured a 99-year lease on the ground, and the name reverted to the Racecourse Ground. The capacity is 10,500, which made it one of the largest stadiums in
25984-460: The club's 87-year stay in the Football League. The 2008–09 season started well, with a 5–0 home victory against Stevenage Borough . However a run of poor results followed, with Wrexham being left in the mid-table battle, only four points above the relegation zone and only keeping two clean sheets all season. Following a 3–0 home defeat against Rushden and Diamonds , and fans calling for his dismissal, Little left Wrexham by mutual consent. Little
26208-514: The club's history, such as when Ted Regan scored the club's first ever Football League hat-trick , and also Brian Simpson became the first Wrexham player to be sent off in a Football League game, against Southport in January 1922. Charlie Hewitt was the club's first-ever manager during this period. In the 1926–27 season the club got past the first round of the FA Cup only to be knocked out by Rhyl . The following season Wrexham fought their way to
26432-470: The club's name to Wrexham Athletic for one season), before moving back to the Racecourse Ground for the 1883–84 season, where the club have played their home games ever since. In 1890 Wrexham joined The Combination league, playing their first game against Gorton Villa on 6 September 1890, with Arthur Lea scoring Wrexham's only goal in a 5–1 defeat. Lea played for the club despite only having one arm as did playing colleague James Roberts. Wrexham finished
26656-611: The club. The deal received the backing of 98.6% of the 2,000 members of the Wrexham Supporters Trust that voted and was completed in February 2021. They were included in FIFA 22 as part of the "Rest of World" section, becoming the first non-league team to be featured in the series . In 2021–22 , Wrexham finished 2nd before losing the play-off semi-final 5–4 to Grimsby Town after extra time. Wrexham also reached
26880-599: The clubs known as the cross-border derby . In 1992, Wrexham upset the reigning English Champions Arsenal in the FA Cup. They also scored a 1–0 victory over FC Porto in 1984 in the European Cup Winners' Cup . Wrexham was eligible for the European Cup Winners' Cup due to winning the Welsh Cup; their first European tie was against FC Zürich of Switzerland in 1972 and their last was played in Romania against Petrolul Ploiești in 1995. Wrexham's home stadium,
27104-532: The clubs that season. Later, in 1894, Ardwick, known as Manchester City, vigorously pursued Meredith's signature. Two club officials travelled to Wales to meet the player. One was secretary- manager Joshua Parlby , the other either Furniss or chairman John Chapman. The pair were met with suspicion. Anecdotes by contemporary figures suggest locals initially chased them away and were only allowed to speak to Meredith after they bought drinks for his mining colleagues. Meredith did not wish to abandon life in Chirk. His mother
27328-456: The competition due to the away goals rule . The 1972–73 season saw the completion of the new Yale stand, with a capacity of up to 5,500. Including the terrace helped to comprise the bottom tier of the stand. The 1973–74 season saw Wrexham change their badge from the Maelor crest to a brand new badge that had much more resemblance to the Welsh roots of the club, with three feathers on the top of
27552-537: The couple had two daughters. He was a supporter of the Liberal Party . He ran businesses throughout his career, with little success, and was declared bankrupt in July 1909 after his clubting shop was damaged by fire. During the 1910s he ran a public house (despite being a teetotaller). He later pursued an interest in the film industry by buying shares in numerous Stretford cinemas in the 1930s. He also starred in
27776-425: The course of the game. The maximum number of substitutions permitted in most competitive international and domestic league games is five in 90 minutes, with each team being allowed one more if the game should go into extra-time; the permitted number may vary in other competitions or in friendly matches . Common reasons for a substitution include injury, tiredness, ineffectiveness, a tactical switch, or timewasting at
28000-572: The course of the season. This was the first season that the club appeared in their now-familiar red and white strip for the first time for the short-lived 1939–40 season. During the Second World War years, when long cross-county trips were impossible due to the war, Wrexham played in the Regional League West against local teams from Merseyside and Manchester , amongst others in the northwest region. Wrexham's position as
28224-453: The eighth century. The modern rules of association football are based on the mid-19th century efforts to standardise the widely varying forms of football played in the public schools of England. The Cambridge rules , first drawn up at the University of Cambridge in 1848, were particularly influential in the development of subsequent codes, including association football. The Cambridge rules were written at Trinity College, Cambridge , at
28448-420: The end of a finely poised game. In standard adult matches, a player who has been substituted may not take further part in a match. IFAB recommends "that a match should not continue if there are fewer than seven players in either team". Any decision regarding points awarded for abandoned games is left to the individual football associations. A game is officiated by a referee , who has "full authority to enforce
28672-512: The end of his first season, Meredith played in the 1893 Welsh Cup final, which Chirk lost 2–1 to Wrexham . Meredith formed a solid understanding with inside-right William Owen , a former Wales international. Chirk withdrew from The Combination and entered only the Welsh league in 1893 due to low attendances caused by the coal miners' strike. In an attempt to make ends meet, Meredith not only played for Chirk but accepted an offer to play for Football League club Northwich Victoria as well, who gave him
28896-405: The end of the game is the winner. There are situations where a goal can be disallowed, such as an offside call or a foul in the build-up to the goal. Depending on the format of the competition, an equal number of goals scored may result in a draw being declared with 1 point awarded to each team, or the game goes into extra time or a penalty shoot-out . Internationally, association football
29120-404: The field in a league game against Derby County . His total of 335 appearances was Manchester United's record until 27 August 1928, when Joe Spence made 336th of his 510 appearances for the club. In 1921 he returned to Manchester City on a free transfer. He played 25 first-team games in the 1921–22 season, helping City to record a derby victory over rivals Manchester United. He featured once in
29344-492: The final. After Wrexham started the next season with just 3 wins from 13 league games, Dixie McNeil resigned before his inevitable sacking. He was replaced, initially on a temporary basis, by Brian Flynn , but his appointment was made permanent a month later. However the club continued to struggle domestically, and Flynn was forced to make three important signings in Mark Sertori, Eddie Youds and Alan Kennedy which saw
29568-589: The first meeting of the Players' Union (PU) in December 1907. Meredith had previously been involved with the Association Footballers' Union (the "AFU"), the first attempt by football players in England to organise a trade union . Like the AFU before it, the Players' Union sought the relaxation of restrictions on transfers and wages. Others made the argument that a free market wage structure would ruin
29792-479: The first play-off final to feature two Welsh teams; Newport defeated Wrexham 2–0. In June 2013, members of Wrexham Supporters Trust voted on whether they should change the club's name back to Wrexham AFC. As a result, the name was changed. In February 2014, Andy Morrell stepped down as manager. Billy Barr was appointed as interim manager before being replaced a few weeks later by Kevin Wilkin . Wrexham finished
30016-420: The forehead) other than their hands or arms. Within normal play, all players are free to play the ball in any direction and move throughout the pitch, though players may not pass to teammates who are in an offside position. During gameplay, players attempt to create goal-scoring opportunities through individual control of the ball, such as by dribbling , passing the ball to a teammate, and by taking shots at
30240-506: The form of Romanian team Petrolul Ploiești ; the home leg ended in a 0–0 draw but Wrexham lost 1–0 in the away leg, with the Romanians scoring the only goal of the match, and Wrexham were subsequently knocked out of the tournament. The 1996–97 season saw Wrexham set off on another strong run in the FA Cup and beat more top-flight opposition. Following wins at Colwyn Bay and Scunthorpe United, they were drawn to play West Ham United at home,
30464-528: The formation of a Sheffield FA in 1867. In 1862, John Charles Thring of Uppingham School also devised an influential set of rules. These ongoing efforts contributed to the formation of The Football Association (The FA) in 1863, which first met on the morning of 26 October 1863 at the Freemasons' Tavern in Great Queen Street , London. The only school to be represented on this occasion
30688-528: The forthcoming season. A month later the Wrexham Supporters' Trust (WST) took over the day-to-day running of the club. Fan ownership of Wrexham was finally ratified on 12 December 2011. As of May 2015 the WST had 4,129 adult members and joint-owners of the club. As well as the city of Wrexham , support is drawn from the surrounding towns and villages of the district , such as Gwersyllt and Rhos ,
30912-531: The four British associations. For most of the 20th century, Europe and South America were the dominant regions in association football. The FIFA World Cup , inaugurated in 1930 , became the main stage for players of both continents to show their worth and the strength of their national teams. In the second half of the century, the European Cup and the Copa Libertadores were created, and
31136-623: The fourth round before they lost 0–1 to Birmingham City . A record 32 league goals from Albert Mays helped Wrexham to get to third position in the division in the 1928–29 season. Later in that season Tommy Bamford made his first appearance for the club. He went on to score 201 League and Cup goals for the club during his time at the Racecourse. During the 1929–30 season the club recorded their best-ever league win to date when they defeated Rochdale 8–0. Wrexham enjoyed their best-ever Third Division North season in 1932–33, when they finished runners-up to Hull City and won 18 of their 21 home games during
31360-451: The fourth round of the FA Cup in 1956–57 where they played Manchester United 's Busby Babes in front of a crowd of 34,445 people at the Racecourse, which still remains a club record. The 5–0 defeat did not spoil the occasion for the large home crowd, and later that season Wrexham managed to win the Welsh Cup for the first time in 26 years. 1960 saw the club relegated to a lower tier for the first time in their history, and they dropped into
31584-552: The freehold of the ground and the decision went against him. Hamilton then took this to the Appeal Court in London and it ruled on 14 March 2006 that the stadium must remain in the hands of the club's administrators. On 30 April 2006 the administrators reached an agreement with local car dealer Neville Dickens, subject to agreement by the shareholders and creditors (which was achieved on 30 May), for Dickens to take over control of
31808-404: The game 3–1. Their opponents in the final at Crystal Palace were mid-table Second Division club Bolton Wanderers , and Meredith was cautiously optimistic before the match, stating "We ought to win ... if we play anything like our normal game the cup is ours ... but this is the cup final and, well, anything might happen." With just over 20 minutes played, Livingstone found Meredith with
32032-400: The game during the period. This was due in part to his extraordinary balance and agility, which allowed him to avoid clumsy challenges, and the toughness he had built up from spending his adolescence working in the mines. A model professional, he spent his spare time improving his game with extra training sessions and maintained peak physical fitness by avoiding alcohol and tobacco. His "gimmick"
32256-531: The game ending in a 1–1 draw on a snow-covered pitch. The replay at Upton Park ended in a shock 1–0 win to Wrexham as Kevin Russell scored in the dying minutes to send Wrexham into the fourth round. After also beating Peterborough United and Birmingham City in the following rounds, they played Chesterfield in an all-Division-2 FA Cup quarter-final, Wrexham narrowly losing to the Spireites 1–0. June 1997
32480-695: The game in a specific position, there are few restrictions on player movement, and players can switch positions at any time. The layout of a team's players is known as a formation . Defining the team's formation and tactics is usually the prerogative of the team's manager . There are 17 laws in the official Laws of the Game, each containing a collection of stipulations and guidelines. The same laws are designed to apply to all levels of football for both sexes, although certain modifications for groups such as juniors, seniors and people with physical disabilities are permitted. The laws are often framed in broad terms, which allow flexibility in their application depending on
32704-401: The game led to the club being expelled from the Football Association, leading to the club being reformed in 1884 as Wrexham Olympic. Olympic was dropped from this club's name in 1888. Thanks to a dispute with their landlords, who had raised the rent of the Racecourse Ground to £10 a year, Wrexham played their home games in the 1881–82 and 1882–83 seasons at Rhosddu Recreation Ground (changing
32928-684: The game with former colleagues and regulars at his hotel, the Stretford Road Hotel, which he ran from 1930 to 1945. He rarely missed the chance to attend a Wales game in the 1920s and 1930s. Meredith died in Withington , Manchester in April 1958 at the age of 83, and was buried in Southern Cemetery, Manchester . After he spent many years in an unmarked grave, the Professional Footballers' Association ,
33152-425: The goal, which is guarded by the opposing goalkeeper. Opposing players may try to regain control of the ball by intercepting a pass or through tackling the opponent in possession of the ball; however, physical contact between opponents is restricted. Football is generally a free-flowing game, with play stopping only when the ball has left the field of play or when play is stopped by the referee for an infringement of
33376-538: The ground. The club's fans developed an affinity with the fans of fellow football league club Brighton & Hove Albion , who themselves had managed to successfully depose their chairman and keep control of their stadium after he had sold the ground for development purposes in almost the same circumstances. On 3 December 2004 the club was placed in financial administration by the High Court in Manchester as
33600-404: The highest global television audience in sport. In many parts of the world, football evokes great passions and plays an important role in the life of individual fans , local communities, and even nations. Ryszard Kapuściński says that Europeans who are polite, modest, or humble fall easily into rage when playing or watching football games. The Ivory Coast national football team helped secure
33824-420: The home leg with a 1–0 victory, but in the second leg, Porto showed their class and were 3–0 up after 38 minutes. However, Wrexham pulled goals back and the game finished 4–3, making it 4–4 on aggregate with Wrexham advancing on away goals. The second round draw was to pair Wrexham with Italian side AS Roma , managed by Sven-Göran Eriksson . Wrexham lost 3–0 on aggregate over the two legs. Their league performance
34048-571: The instigation of Alcock. England is also home to the world's first football league , which was founded in Birmingham in 1888 by Aston Villa director William McGregor . The original format contained 12 clubs from the Midlands and Northern England . Laws of the Game are determined by the International Football Association Board (IFAB). The board was formed in 1886 after a meeting in Manchester of
34272-588: The items. The players continued to train, and captain Charlie Roberts came up with the name of Outcasts F.C. The FA organised a meeting of 200 players, excluding the Outcasts, but a rambling speech from chairman Charles Clegg failed to win them over, and an agreement was reached where the PU would be recognised by the FA. In October 1909, the Union balloted its members over the organisation's membership of
34496-475: The job on a permanent basis that summer. His first season in charge saw the team finish mid-table position in an average season, he led the team to a Welsh Cup final win over Kidderminster Harriers. 1986 saw Wrexham make a return to European football with a first-round draw against Maltese side FC Zurrieq, whom they beat 7–0 on aggregate to earn a second-round tie against Real Zaragoza which they drew 2–2 with on aggregate but they went out on away goals. Following
34720-759: The lack of a crossbar, rules which made it remarkably similar to Victorian rules football being developed at that time in Australia. The Sheffield FA played by its own rules until the 1870s, with the FA absorbing some of its rules until there was little difference between the games. The world's oldest football competition is the FA Cup , which was founded by the footballer and cricketer Charles W. Alcock , and has been contested by English teams since 1872. The first official international football match also took place in 1872, between Scotland and England in Glasgow , again at
34944-454: The league season was a traumatic one as the club, on the verge of promotion to the second division with only four matches left to play, needing just three points to reach their goal, missed out after a poor run. Arfon Griffiths took over as player-manager for the 1977–78 season. They reached both the League and FA Cup quarter-finals that season, and Wrexham finally clinched promotion to the second division when they beat Rotherham United 7–1 at
35168-493: The manager's position in 1981, his assistant Mel Sutton was put in charge, with a third-round FA Cup win over Brian Clough 's Nottingham Forest in another cup run, the highlight of the season. The summer of 1982 saw Bobby Roberts appointed the club's new manager. Relegation meant the club had dire financial problems, resulting in the sale of many of the club's experienced and talented players. Frank Carrodus, Ian Edwards , Mick Vinter and Wayne Cegieski had already left during
35392-526: The match 2–1. Wrexham finished sixth in their first season in this league. During their time in the Birmingham and District League, Wrexham won the Welsh Cup six times, in 1908–09, 1909–10, 1910–11, 1913–14, 1914–15, and 1920–21. They also reached the First Round proper of the FA Cup for a second time in the 1908–09 season before losing a replay 1–2 to Exeter City after extra time. In 1921 Wrexham
35616-462: The match, stating "it was a good game for dashing, keen, thrilling football, great goalkeeping and narrow escapes at either end". Meredith and his teammates celebrated the victory with music hall stars such as George Robey . United finished fifth in 1909–10 and exited the FA Cup in the First Round with a defeat to Burnley at Turf Moor . However, the club continued to advance under the generous chairmanship of John Henry Davies , and Old Trafford
35840-478: The match. Also that season Wrexham just missed out on the promotion spots, finishing in 4th place at the end of the season. 1975–76 saw John Neal 's starlets captained by Eddie May, again shocking the football world by reaching the quarter-finals of the European Cup Winners' Cup after another sparkling cup run and defeats of several higher quality opponents. In the first round, Wrexham beat Swedish team Djurgårdens IF 3–2 on aggregate. They then managed to knock out
36064-614: The men's tournament is the most-watched annual sporting event in the world. Association football is one of a family of football codes that emerged from various ball games played worldwide since antiquity. Within the English-speaking world, the sport is now usually called "football" in Great Britain and most of Ulster in the north of Ireland, whereas people usually call it "soccer" in regions and countries where other codes of football are prevalent, such as Australia, Canada, South Africa, most of Ireland (excluding Ulster), and
36288-400: The most recent was played in March 2018 with Wrexham winning 2-0 at the Racecourse Ground. Wrexham lead the head-to-head rivalry with 67 wins compared to Chester's 50. Games between the two are classed as "high risk" for the potential of disorder and are generally moved to early kick-offs with a large police presence to prevent it, though arrests do still occur for various offenses surrounding
36512-464: The nature of the game. The Laws of the Game are published by FIFA, but are maintained by the IFAB. In addition to the seventeen laws, numerous IFAB decisions and other directives contribute to the regulation of association football. Within the United States, Major League Soccer used a distinct ruleset during the 1990s and the National Federation of State High School Associations and NCAA still use rulesets that are comparable to, but different from,
36736-445: The newly created Fourth Division. But their performances improved following the appointment of Ken Barnes as player-manager. He led Wrexham to promotion to the third division in his first season in charge and oversaw the 10–1 trouncing of Hartlepool United , which is still the club's record league victory. Two years after their promotion, Wrexham was relegated to the Fourth Division again, and in 1966 they finished rock-bottom at 92nd in
36960-447: The next stoppage of play. The referee's decision in all on-pitch matters is considered final. The score of a match cannot be altered after the game, even if later evidence shows that decisions (including awards/non-awards of goals) were incorrect. Wrexham A.F.C. Wrexham Association Football Club ( Welsh : Clwb Pêl-droed Wrecsam ) is a professional association football club based in Wrexham , Wales. Formed in 1864, it
37184-407: The next year. For their first decade, Wrexham mostly played friendly matches against both Welsh and English opposition, with the Welsh Cup providing most of their competitive football, Wrexham winning it again in 1883. 1883 also saw Wrexham's first appearance in the FA Cup, when after receiving a bye to the second round of the competition they were defeated 3–4 at home by Oswestry . Crowd trouble at
37408-426: The offences that constitute misconduct are listed, the definitions are broad. In particular, the offence of "unsporting behaviour" may be used to deal with most events that violate the spirit of the game, even if they are not listed as specific offences. A referee can show a yellow or red card to a player, substitute, substituted player, and to non-players such as managers and support staff. Rather than stopping play,
37632-399: The original thirteen laws of the game. The sticking point was hacking, which a twelfth club at the meeting, Blackheath FC , had wanted to keep, resulting in them withdrawing from the FA. Other English rugby clubs followed this lead and did not join the FA, and instead in 1871, along with Blackheath, formed the Rugby Football Union . The FA rules included handling of the ball by "marks" and
37856-642: The past 15 years, even as a lower-league side, Wrexham have been able to attract gates of 11,000+ for big games at the Racecourse. Famous Wrexham fans include Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield , former Royal butler Paul Burrell , actor and television presenter Tim Vincent , actor Llŷr Ifans , actor and comedian Ted Robbins , Sweet guitarist Andy Scott , Lloyd Roberts of rock band Neck Deep , 2012 Olympian weightlifter Gareth Evans , Sky Sports reporter Bryn Law , Rugby World Cup referee Nigel Owens and former footballers Neil Roberts , Robbie Savage and Mark Hughes . The club also has
38080-461: The pit for at least a year, commuting for matches. Meredith made his Manchester City debut in November 1894 in a 5–4 loss to Newcastle United . The following week he played his first home match for the club at Hyde Road , and scored two goals against Newton Heath – who later became Manchester United – in the first Manchester derby to take place in the league. Newton Heath won the match 5–2. He turned professional in January 1895. He ended
38304-432: The pitch does not become square. In 2008, the IFAB initially approved a fixed size of 105 m (115 yd) long and 68 m (74 yd) wide as a standard pitch dimension for international matches; however, this decision was later put on hold and was never actually implemented. The longer boundary lines are touchlines , while the shorter boundaries (on which the goals are placed) are goal lines . A rectangular goal
38528-437: The pitch, making it more socially acceptable for women to play. The first match recorded by the Scottish Football Association took place in 1892 in Glasgow . In England, the first recorded game of football between women took place in 1895. Women's football has traditionally been associated with charity games and physical exercise, particularly in the United Kingdom. Association football continued to be played by women since
38752-437: The player spends the most time. For example, there are central defenders and left and right midfielders. The ten outfield players may be arranged in any combination. The number of players in each position determines the style of the team's play; more forwards and fewer defenders creates a more aggressive and offensive-minded game, while the reverse creates a slower, more defensive style of play. While players typically spend most of
38976-400: The players and spectators by holding up a board showing this number. The signalled stoppage time may be further extended by the referee. Added time was introduced because of an incident which happened in 1891 during a match between Stoke and Aston Villa . Trailing 1–0 with two minutes remaining, Stoke were awarded a penalty kick. Villa's goalkeeper deliberately kicked the ball out of play; by
39200-458: The reduction in gate revenue. The club remained in the Combination League until 1905, by which time they had managed to win the league four times. After several unsuccessful attempts, Wrexham was finally elected to the Birmingham and District League in time for the beginning of the 1905–06 season. Wrexham's first-ever match in this league was at home against Kidderminster Harriers at the Racecourse, and two thousand spectators witnessed Wrexham win
39424-416: The referee may allow play to continue if doing so will benefit the team against which an offence has been committed. This is known as "playing an advantage". The referee may "call back" play and penalise the original offence if the anticipated advantage does not ensue within "a few seconds". Even if an offence is not penalised due to advantage being played, the offender may still be sanctioned for misconduct at
39648-419: The referee. Stoppage time does not fully compensate for the time in which the ball is out of play , and a 90-minute game typically involves about an hour of "effective playing time". The referee alone signals the end of the match. In matches where a fourth official is appointed, towards the end of the half, the referee signals how many minutes of stoppage time they intend to add. The fourth official then informs
39872-440: The respective six confederations. The World Cup has been held every four years since; by 2019 , it had expanded to 24 national teams, and 1.12 billion viewers watched the competition. Four years later , FIFA targeted the 32-team 2023 Women's World Cup at an audience of 2 billion, while about 1.4 million tickets were sold, setting a Women's World Cup record. Women's football has been an Olympic event since 1996 . North America
40096-414: The resulting bribery scandal . He claimed to be baffled as to why his teammates refused to pass him during the game. During the First World War, he played a match against United, making a guest appearance for Port Vale , with Vale recording a 5–2 victory at the Old Recreation Ground . Frustrated with the club for delaying payments over his benefit match, he also played as a guest for Manchester City. After
40320-426: The role of assistant manager. After a promising start to his reign, Wrexham experienced a run of seven straight league defeats, prompting the club to bring in eleven new players during the January transfer window. Wrexham went six matches unbeaten before some poor form which saw defeats against some fellow strugglers. Wrexham were finally relegated to non-League following a 2–0 defeat away at Hereford United , ending
40544-469: The rules. After a stoppage, play recommences with a specified restart. At a professional level, most matches produce only a few goals. For example, the 2022–23 season of the English Premier League produced an average of 2.85 goals per match. The Laws of the Game do not specify any player positions other than goalkeeper, but a number of specialised roles have evolved. Broadly, these include three main categories: strikers , or forwards, whose main task
40768-451: The season second from bottom in eighth place in the first season. Wrexham played in the Combination for four years before a rapid increase in costs resulted in the club joining the Welsh League in the 1894–95 season. Wrexham won the Welsh League both years that they were in it, but they then decided to return to the Combination League in 1896, as despite the reduced support they received, the savings made on their traveling expenses outweighed
40992-437: The season to lead the league, trading the first spot back and forth, and both setting new National League records for wins, goals, and goal difference, while 20+ points ahead of the third place team by the end of the season. On 22 April 2023, Wrexham secured winning their first league title in 45 years, and were promoted to the EFL League Two after a 15 year absence, following a 3–1 win against Boreham Wood . The club amassed
41216-422: The severe punishment administered by the Commission AGAINST ME and state that the offence I committed at Aston Villa should have wiped me out of football forever. Why ME ALONE? when I was only the spokesman of others equally guilty. In May 1906 while serving his ban, Meredith moved to Manchester United . He joined on a free transfer and received a £500 signing-on fee from United; Manchester City reluctantly accepted
41440-441: The sexes are so widely divided are all on the side of emancipation , and I look forward to the time when ladies may sit in Parliament and have a voice in the direction of affairs, especially those which concern them most." Honeyball and those like her paved the way for women's football. However, the women's game was frowned upon by the British football associations and continued without their support. It has been suggested that this
41664-433: The summer, Steve Fox, Joey Jones , Dixie McNeil and Billy Ronson soon followed. Wrexham were again relegated to the Fourth Division after plummeting from apparent mid-table security. The club's slide continued into the following season, and only goal difference prevented Wrexham from being forced to apply for re-election to the League. The 1984–85 season saw Wrexham take on FC Porto in European competition. Wrexham won
41888-413: The takeover of the club by Neville Dickens and Geoff Moss and their associates; this is reflected on new merchandise, although most fans will still refer to it as "Wrexham AFC". The 2006–07 season started well for Wrexham, as they went 8 games unbeaten. However, the club would then struggle with Denis Smith eventually being sacked in January 2007 with Wrexham in the bottom half of the division and after
42112-430: The team finish in twenty-first place, therefore avoiding relegation. At the start of the 1990–91 season it was announced there would be no relegation to the Conference Premier as a team had already voluntarily left the league. That season Wrexham finished in ninety-second place. Wrexham were knocked out of the European Cup Winners' Cup in the second round by Manchester United 5–0 on aggregate, who eventually went on to win
42336-404: The team into a powerful force, as they already possessed a dominant half-back line in captain Charlie Roberts , Dick Duckworth and Alex Bell . They ended the 1906–07 season in eighth place in the First Division . Manager Ernest Mangnall signed Jimmy Turnbull , and the forward line of Meredith, Bannister, Jimmy Turnbull and Sandy Turnbull were dominant in the 1907–08 campaign. United won
42560-401: The team to the club's first major honour, a 1–0 victory over Bolton Wanderers in the 1904 FA Cup final . He moved to Manchester United in May 1906 after being banned for bribing Aston Villa half-back Alex Leake £ 10 to lose a match. There, he won the league title in 1907–08 and 1910–11, the FA Cup in 1909 , and two FA Charity Shields . He also helped to set up the Players' Union , which
42784-438: The third oldest professional club and the oldest in Wales. Their first game was played on 22 October 1864 at the Denbighshire County Cricket Ground (The Racecourse) against the Prince of Wales Fire Brigade. As the rules of football were still somewhat fluid at the time, early matches featured teams with up to 17 players on each side (16 players when playing the Provincial Insurance Office and Chester College , 15 players against
43008-447: The time it was recovered, the clock had run out and the game was over, leaving Stoke unable to attempt the penalty. The same law also states that the duration of either half is extended until a penalty kick to be taken or retaken is completed; thus, no game can end with an uncompleted penalty. In league competitions, games may end in a draw. In knockout competitions where a winner is required, various methods may be employed to break such
43232-475: The time of the first recorded women's games in the late 19th century. The best-documented early European team was founded by activist Nettie Honeyball in England in 1894. It was named the British Ladies' Football Club . Honeyball is quoted as, "I founded the association late last year [1894], with the fixed resolve of proving to the world that women are not the 'ornamental and useless' creatures men have pictured. I must confess, my convictions on all matters where
43456-413: The title with a nine-point margin over second-placed Aston Villa , and secured the 1908 FA Charity Shield (the first ever Charity Shield ) with a 4–0 win over Queens Park Rangers at Stamford Bridge . United slipped to a disappointing 13th-place finish in 1908–09 . Meredith was suspended for January in punishment for kicking a Brighton & Hove Albion player in an FA Cup match. The club reached
43680-422: The tournament or be the champion. Goals scored during extra time periods count towards the final score of the game, but kicks from the penalty mark are only used to decide the team that progresses to the next part of the tournament, with goals scored in a penalty shoot-out not making up part of the final score. In competitions using two-legged matches , each team competes at home once, with an aggregate score from
43904-496: The transfer as they had previously signed an undertaking promising Meredith a benefit match, and he was willing to forego the agreement if the club granted his transfer. He returned from suspension on 1 January 1907 and marked his debut at Bank Street with an assist for Sandy Turnbull to score the only goal of the game against Aston Villa . In addition to Turnbull, Meredith was joined at United by former City teammates Jimmy Bannister and Herbert Burgess . This new forward line made
44128-408: The transmission of cuju outside of China, especially the form of the game popular in the Tang dynasty , the period when the inflatable ball was invented and replaced the stuffed ball. Other East Asian games include kemari in Japan and chuk-guk in Korea, both influenced by cuju . Kemari originated after the year 600 during the Asuka period . It was a ceremonial rather than
44352-445: The trophy. The 1991–92 season saw Wrexham still in a poor financial state, as they continued to struggle on the field. With the club knocked out of the League Cup and struggling in the league, it was left to the FA Cup to keep the season alive. Having beaten Telford United and Winsford United , they were drawn to play the previous season's First Division champions Arsenal . Wrexham produced one of their most memorable nights to beat
44576-439: The two matches deciding which team progresses. Where aggregates are equal, the away goals rule may be used to determine the winners, in which case the winner is the team that scored the most goals in the leg they played away from home. If the result is still equal, extra time and potentially a penalty shoot-out are required. Under the Laws, the two basic states of play during a game are ball in play and ball out of play . From
44800-428: The war ended, he demanded a free transfer and was repulsed that the club demanded a transfer fee, stating that the transfer market was a "degrading business" for players. On 26 April 1920, in a league match against Notts County , Meredith became the club's top appearance maker, overtaking George Wall with 320 caps to his name. On 7 May 1921, at 46 years, 281 days, he became United's oldest ever player when he took to
45024-533: The year ending in June 2023. In the 2023–24 season, Wrexham secured a second successive promotion, taking the club to EFL League One , the third tier of the English football system and ultimately finished second behind Stockport County F.C. . Wrexham was awarded Category Four status as an EFL academy from the 2023/24 campaign with the short-term aim to reach Category Three status and operate an Under-18 side. Club Necaxa 's backers purchased 5% of Wrexham AFC in April 2024 and both owners, in turn, purchased
45248-457: Was Charterhouse . The Freemasons' Tavern was the setting for five more meetings of The FA between October and December 1863; the English FA eventually issued the first comprehensive set of rules named Laws of the Game , forming modern football. The laws included bans on running with the ball in hand and hacking (kicking an opponent in the shins), tripping and holding. Eleven clubs, under the charge of FA secretary Ebenezer Cobb Morley , ratified
45472-664: Was outside right , and his key skills were dribbling , passing , crossing and shooting . A dedicated and extremely fit professional, his habit of chewing on a toothpick during games made him instantly recognisable. In 27 seasons in the Football League from 1892 to 1924 (not including the four seasons lost to the First World War and the 1905–06 season in which he was banned for bribing an opposition player), he scored 194 goals in 740 league and cup appearances. He played for Chirk before joining Northwich Victoria in 1892. His career took off when he signed with Manchester City in 1894 and turned professional in January 1895. He captained
45696-473: Was a forerunner of the Professional Footballers' Association . He returned to Manchester City in 1921 at age 47 and played 32 games before retiring in 1924, making him the oldest-ever player for City, United and Wales. He later ran the Stretford Road Hotel and helped to coach the short-lived Manchester Central . Meredith was born in 1874 in Chirk , a small mining town in Denbighshire , Wales, just south of Wrexham . He started work at Black Park Colliery as
45920-458: Was an extremely accurate passer and crosser of the ball. His dribbling and crossing gave him a large advantage over rival wingers, who relied solely on speed to beat opposition full-backs. In addition to wing-play, he was also highly skilled at sending in long-range shots across the face of the goal, and could be relied upon to meet crosses from his left-winger with a powerful volley . Meredith had to deal with extremely physical defences and
46144-400: Was announced as a new minority investor in the club in October 2024. Wrexham's home kit is red shirts, white shorts, and white socks. The club has played in a predominantly red kit with white features since the late 1930s. The away kit is white shirts, red shorts, and red socks. In 2014–15, to celebrate the club's 150th anniversary, Wrexham wore a red and black hooped Nike home shirt as this
46368-413: Was cancelled in September after Wrexham University (then known as Glyndŵr University) bought the Racecourse, as the university had an exclusive deal with another brewery. Starting with the kits for the 2021–22 seasons, the back neck of the shirt has the number "1934" embroidered in, in remembrance of the Gresford disaster . In May 2023, the team's training kit was announced to be sponsored by Betty Buzz,
46592-463: Was elected to the newly formed Third Division North of the Football League . Their first League game was against Hartlepools United at the Racecourse in front of 8,000 spectators. Playing in blue shirts, Wrexham were defeated 0–2. The week after this defeat Wrexham travelled north to play Hartlepools and managed to get their revenge by beating them 1–0 in a hard-earned victory. It was during this particular season that Wrexham achieved many "firsts" in
46816-404: Was even more dire than the previous year, and by the time Bobby Roberts was finally removed from his post, Wrexham was rock-bottom of the entire Football League. Former Racecourse favourite Dixie McNeil was appointed caretaker manager, and immediately inspired a revival that saw Wrexham win 7 of their last 10 matches and comfortably finish clear of having to apply for re-election, which earned him
47040-474: Was first recorded as in exercise in the Zhan Guo Ce , a military history from the Han dynasty . Cuju players would pass the ball around, having to avoid it touching the ground at any point. It was then passed to a designated player, who attempted to kick it through the fengliu yan , a circular goal atop 10–11 meter poles. During the Han dynasty (206 BCE – 220 CE), cuju games were standardised and rules were established. The Silk Road facilitated
47264-419: Was first recorded in 1889 in the earlier form of socca . Kicking ball games arose independently multiple times across multiple cultures. The Chinese competitive game cuju ( 蹴鞠 , literally "kickball"; also known as tsu chu ) resembles modern association football as well as a mix of basketball, and volleyball. This is the earliest form of a kicking game for which there is historical evidence. The game
47488-431: Was kindled by his elder brothers. Elias, the eldest, was a train driver for the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway . His work allowed him to take Meredith to watch professional teams such as Everton . Football was a keen pastime for the miners, and the standard of amateur teams from towns and villages in north east Wales was high as a result; Chirk won the Welsh Cup five times between 1887 and 1894, with miners making up
47712-417: Was later surpassed, at 45 years and 229 days, he remains the oldest player to win a Wales cap and an international call from any national team ever. He was actually chosen by the selectors for 71 consecutive matches, but only made 48 appearances as his clubs regularly refused to release him for international duty. Meredith was able to avoid injury throughout his career despite the extremely physical nature of
47936-440: Was motivated by a perceived threat to the "masculinity" of the game. Women's football became popular on a large scale at the time of the First World War , when female employment in heavy industry spurred the growth of the game, much as it had done for men 50 years earlier. The most successful team of the era was Dick, Kerr Ladies F.C. of Preston, England . The team played in one of the first women's international matches against
48160-462: Was often boxed into the corner of the pitch by as many as four players. As his talents became widely regarded, more well-organised defences would designate him with a man- marker , to try and isolate him from his teammates. This often left him reliant on an unselfish inside-right partner willing to fetch and carry the ball for him without expecting much goals or glory in return. A hard-working wing-half would also improve Meredith's effectiveness by winning
48384-420: Was opened in February 1910. Harold Halse was to partner Meredith at inside-right for the 1910–11 season but proved too much of a "free-spirit" and was replaced by Jack Picken , a "plodder [who] understands what Meredith requires". A defeat at Villa Park in the penultimate game of the season left United needing to beat third-place Sunderland and hope that Aston Villa failed to beat Liverpool . United were
48608-447: Was particularly against the idea: "It is all very well for you gentlemen to leave your big cities and come to our villages to steal our boys away ... Our boys are happy and healthy, satisfied with their work and innocent amusements ... if Billy takes my advice he will stick to his work and play football for his own amusement when work is finished." Meredith eventually signed for Manchester City as an amateur. He continued to work at
48832-526: Was partnered with George Livingstone for the 1903–04 campaign, who was able to supply him and the rest of the team with quality passes . Drawn against a strong Sunderland club in the First Round of the FA Cup , Meredith was the "raider-in-chief" as City claimed a 3–2 victory at Hyde Road. City then defeated Woolwich Arsenal and Middlesbrough to reach the semi-finals. There they faced The Wednesday at Goodison Park , and Meredith scored one goal (bundled in by Gillespie) and claimed two assists as City won
49056-561: Was promoted out of the Fourth Division in 1961–62, only to be relegated again two years later. Another promotion followed in 1969–70, and it reached the Second Division for the first time after winning the Third Division title in 1977–78. Two successive relegations saw it back in the fourth tier by 1983, and it saw no further promotion until 1992–93. Relegated once more in 2002, it gained immediate promotion in 2002–03, before worsening financial problems resulted in another relegation and then administration in December 2004. It took 18 months for
49280-520: Was replaced by Dean Saunders . Wrexham's first full season in the Conference Premier ended in a disappointing 10th place. The following year, 2009–10 , ended in a similar fashion with Wrexham finishing in 11th position, well off the pace of the promotion battle. In March 2011, the ownership of the club became subject to two bids: one from Wrexham Supporters' Trust and another from local businesswoman Stephanie Booth . Wrexham's MP and AM indicated that they would prefer Wrexham Supporters' Trust to secure
49504-427: Was the club's first ever recorded home shirt. Macron have been the kit supplier of Wrexham AFC since 2016 and helped arrange a pre-season training camp for the first team in pre-season 2017 in Portugal where over 600 supporters traveled over to support the team in a 2–1 win over Louletano. They still visit Portugal each summer. In April 2011, Wrexham signed a two-year sponsorship deal with Greene King brewery. This
49728-441: Was the date for the official opening of Colliers Park, which was Wrexham's new training ground and was situated just outside Gresford on Chester Road. It was built at a cost of £750,000 and is widely regarded to be one of the best training grounds outside of the top flight. It has been used for training by many visiting teams that play at a higher standard over the years, such as Barcelona. The 1999–2000 season saw Wrexham again beat
49952-496: Was to chew on a toothpick during matches, and this unusual trait was picked up on by cartoonists of the time. Writing a 1947 critique of Stanley Matthews , Meredith criticised the lack of direct play on show in the 1940s and stated that when he was playing, "I knew what was expected of me – to beat the wing-half and the full-back, take the ball down to the corner flag and centre". His ball control skills were unparalleled, leaving opposition players unable to tackle him. He also
50176-412: Was you, I envy you, indeed I do! It ain't that you're tricky with your feet, But it's those centres that you send in Which Turnbull then heads in, Oh, I wish I was you, Indeed I do Indeed I do" — One of the popular songs sung on the terraces at Hyde Road. City dominated the Second Division in the 1898–99 season and won promotion as champions. Helping them to keep them in winning ways in
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