Wrexham has been promoted to EFL League One. It’s a fantastic accomplishment for Ryan Reynolds and company. We look forward to seeing the real FC Hollywood (in a good way, when we say this about FC Bayern it’s a bad thing) next season in EFL League One. But they likely won’t win League Two as already promoted Stockport County is four points clear of Wrexham with a match in hand.
Prior to May 2011, Stockport County F.C. had spent its entire 128-year history in the Football League. The Manchester-area club in fact had just gone through an era where they helped develop players as luminous as Anthony Pilkington, Ashley Williams and Adam LaFondre just to name a few.
But in May 2011, Stockport was relegated, and what many like me thought would be a single season in non-league proved to be more than a decade of toiling and involved more relegation’s to come.
As recently as 2001-02 Stockport had been in the SAME DIVISION as local rivals Manchester City. Since then both clubs have had multiple ownership changes and while Manchester City has won seven English top flight titles since then, Stockport has been relegated five times since. In fact, things were so bad that at one point the club lost sole tenancy of its ground, Edgley Park, which has been home to the club since 1902.
Two seasons ago, Stockport held off Wrexham to finally win (automatic) promotion back to the Football League (now the EFL). It took a level of fitness and mental fortitude when you also consider Stockport advanced to the third round proper of the FA Cup, stretching the side depth-wise.
Last season, an unfortunate draw against local rival free-spending (insert plastic club reference here if you care to- I don’t) Salford City late in the season send Stockport out of the automatic promotion places. Stockport then fell in the playoff final in a dramatic penalty shootout to Carlisle at Wembley.
This season, determined not to be in the same position, the club has been flying all season. It’s easy to talk about Paddy Madden’s goals or how savvy an attacker Isaac Olafe has proven to be, but the bottom line for me is the spirit Dave Challinor, a former County player has imparted in the squad, leading to three successive standout campaigns.
Stockport is a real Hollywood story themselves!
It would be helpful to compare the respective payrolls of Stockport vs Wrexham. Is that or the total budgets of either club available anywhere?
Wonder if FFP applies to the lower leagues.
How much money can the rich guys lose.