Former Wrexham captain Ben Tozer has spoken honestly about Wrexham’s need to face adversity this season in League One.
Tozer spent three years with the Welsh club, signing shortly after the takeover by Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.
While at the club, he helped them return to the Football League, securing back-to-back promotions and returning to the third tier of English football.
He was released by Wrexham after their promotion to League One and has since signed for National League side, Forest Green Rovers.
What did Tozer say about Wrexham?
The experienced defender spoke with another former Wrexham man, Ben Foster, recently on his podcast ‘Fozcast‘.
The pair discussed Wrexham and in particular their upcoming return to League One.
Tozer was very open about his opinion that Wrexham and their fans need to experience some adversity because the story at the moment is ‘very Hollywood’.
When asked, “What do you think next season for Wrexham? Do you think there’s a genuine possibility of promotion?” – Tozer said:
“I don’t know, I think it could be possible. Yeah, there’s so many ifs and buts.
“The fans’ expectations are so high now, even if you’ve got like the so-called new fans that all they expect is win, win-win. You kind of think they need to see a little bit of adversity.
“The old fans have had all the adversities, a hell of a lot of adversity, but you need the new fans to see a little bit of adversity.
“I‘m not saying like relegation battle, no chance, they’re way better than that. But I mean like pushing for play-offs.
“Pushing for a play-off then maybe seeing the disappointment and getting a bit more reality because it is a bit, you know, Hollywood, isn’t it?”
Is Tozer Right? – Opinion
Since the takeover by the Hollywood stars, Wrexham have gone from strength to strength. This is in part thanks to the money the duo have been able to put into the club.
Wrexham were able to pay players like Paul Mullin big wages, £4,500 per week according to reports, something not all other clubs at that level could do.
They also were able to lure Phil Parkinson to the National League. He’s a manager with great Football League experience and was arguably overqualified for that level.
Both of these things set the bar of expectation high amongst most of the fan base, who were so used to disappointment.
However, it would be unfair to say the club and their fans haven’t experienced adversity under Reynolds and McElhenney’s ownership.
In the pair’s first full season, Wrexham finished second and suffered play-off heartbreak, losing to Notts County in the semi-finals. This was all at the end of the season when they were expected to finally return to the Football League.
Lots of those players have since departed the club, and this new bunch are only used to success. You could say they need the adversity, but many have been around the game a long time and understand the ups and downs.
But to say the new fans aren’t used to adversity is hard to agree with.