Phil Parkinson comments on Birmingham City tactics as Blues 'pinned in' and Jay Stansfield 'handled'
Phil Parkinson insists Wrexham had League One leaders Birmingham City ‘on the rack’ during the second half of last night’s 1-1 draw at the Racecourse Ground – and focused on one player in particular.
The Red Dragons, who have not lost at home all season, took an early lead through Ollie Rathbone only to concede a scrappy equaliser from a corner, awarded to Lyndon Dykes.
They then pressed Blues right back and will feel they did enough to win, forcing good saves out of Ryan Allsop and denying Blues virtually any attacking moments of note in the second period. Parkinson noted how his defence blunted Blues’ offensive players – including the division’s most costly transfer Jay Stansfield.
READ MORE: Chris Davies gives Tomoki Iwata injury update after Birmingham City ace misses third game
READ MORE: Chris Davies laments two decisions vs Wrexham and reveals message to Birmingham City players
“Pleased with the performance. Good start from us, great goal by Ollie, disappointed with the goal we conceded,” Parkinson said.
“But second half I thought we responded really well. In terms of working on the training pitch and implementing what we asked the lads to do, I thought they did it really well, and also learning from the first game (a 3-1 loss at Birmingham in September).
“I said to the lads before the game that two years ago we were playing Gateshead away in front of 1,000 people, now we’re entertaining Birmingham in front of a full house live on TV. We’ve earned the right to be here – now we’re here in these big games, we’ve got to show everybody what we’re all about, and I think we did that, all bar get the winning goal.
“We really had them pinned in and they were bringing on centre-backs, another big striker to defend. We had them on the rack, we really did. There was always a threat on the counter with the pace they've got, but all in all, I'm pleased with the lads tonight.
“Last Thursday it wasn't a typical Wrexham performance, but you get those blips along the way and it's how you respond and we've regrouped quickly this week. We had a good week on the training pitch, and we've put it into practice today.
“I think we were up against some good players tonight, and I think Max Cleworth against Jay Stansfield, everyone's talking about Jay Stansfield, what a good player and he is a good player, but people might be talking about Max tonight, the way he handled it, I thought it was an absolutely superb performance. He showed what great athleticism he's got, how calm he is in 1 v 1 situations defensively.
“I don't want to talk him up too much because of the transfer window, [but] he was excellent tonight. There was a lot of good performances from the lads tonight.”
