Prior to their League One season, Humphrey Ker, the manager of Wrexham, has already issued a severe warning to Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds.
Wrexham has only been successful recently, having gone from the National League to the third division of English football with back-to-back promotions.
The Reds now face formidable opponents in League One, such as Huddersfield Town, Birmingham City, and Bolton Wanderers, all of whom have the capacity to draw crowds of more than 20,000.
Reaching a third consecutive promotion would be unprecedented, like going from being a huge fish in a tiny pond to playing on an even playing field with their competitors.
Before the summer, Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds gave off the impression that they would stop at nothing to bring Wrexham into the Championship. However, executive director Humphrey Ker has now brought them back to earth.
Humphrey Ker fires warning to Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds
When an idea occurs to McElhenney and Reynolds, it’s like they’re kids in a candy store; Ker is the adult who brings them back to reality.
The 41-year-old has moderated his expectations by saying he would be content with a top-10 result, in contrast to the Hollywood owners, since he is fully aware that League One will be their toughest test to date.
In an interview with The Wrap, Ker has acknowledged that Wrexham are no longer a big fish in a small pond and the harsh realities of running a football club start coming to the fore.
“I like to inject a bit of reality to Rob and Ryan’s level of expectation,” he said. “We’ve been very fortunate. We’ve enjoyed two years of pretty much unparalleled success and we’ve had it very easy so far.
“The huge natural advantages we’ve enjoyed the last couple of years start to evaporate the further up the ladder we go. We’re not the big fish in a small pond anymore. The harsh realities of what’s required to run a football club start to come more to the fore. We have to be good in order to succeed.”
Now everything they do has been put under the microscope, heightened by the Welcome to Wrexham documentary, Ker explains how there is no way to hide if the club has a rough season.
He added: “If we do make a fool of ourselves, we can’t do it in relative darkness. Everything that we do is going to be under the microscope, which brings added pressure but, as I say, is a result of this brilliant support, which is helping us to power towards our goals and objectives.”
A season of stability would be good for Wrexham
There’s a reason why no team in the top five leagues of English football has ever achieved three promotions in a row, and that is because it’s very unsustainable.
Wrexham can, of course, become the first team to accomplish that feat by finishing in the top two or going up via the play-offs in 2024/25 however, that could be of detriment to their long-term goal.
For instance, if Phil Parkinson’s men were to win promotion next season, they’d have to completely overhaul their squad to compete in the Championship.
On the other hand, if they stabilise in League One for a few campaigns, they can slowly build a side that can not only serve its purpose in the third tier but also hold its own in the division above.
Wrexham have seen such a rapid rise in the past two years that a mid-table finish would probably be welcomed by most supporters, at least for next season anyway.
