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Wrexham defeated local rivals Shrewsbury at New Meadow to advance to the fourth round of the FA Cup for the second season in a row, much to the delight of their Hollywood owners and famous friends.
Ryan Reynold’s and Rob McElhenney’s side defeated Shrewsbury, who play in the division above Wrexham, in a tense affair via a 72nd-minute goal from Thomas O’Connor. The game marked the first time the teams — barely separated by the England-Wales border — have met in almost 16 years.
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The buzz around Wrexham and its celebrity owners reached new levels during a run un the FA Cup last year when the team beat one Championship side Coventry and then took another, Premier League-bound Sheffield United, to a replay.
On Sunday, responding to a video of the goal shared by the FA Cup’s official account on X, McElhenney posted: “You should’ve seen my living room.”
Co-owner Reynolds, who watched the game alongside Hugh Jackman, was pictured by the X-Men star celebrating the goal with the caption: “HUGE! ROUND 4.”
Photo by Jan Kruger/Getty Images
Shrewsbury enjoyed the better of the play in the games early stages on Sunday, with Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson noting after the game the difference in physicality between the teams “caught out” his side in the opening exchanges.
Tunmise Sobowale missed the most gilt-edged chance for the home team, meeting Jordan Shipley’s cross unmarked at the back post only to blaze his close-range effort way over the bar.
Wrexham grew into the game as it went on — though Shrewsbury continued to enjoy the better of the chances — and the Welsh side punished their opponent’s wastefulness as O’Connor’s deflected strike bounced past Marko Marosi in goal to spark wild scenes in the away end.
Stout rearguard action from Wrexham saw out the match and the League 2 team now await Monday’s draw to see who they will play in the fourth round.
“The FA Cup is a bonus for us, we know that, but we’re representing the club which has great tradition in this competition and every time we go into a game I always remind the lads of that,” Parkinson added after the game.
Information from the Associated Press contributed to this report.