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Irish Mirror
Irish Mirror
Sport
Darragh Culhane

Irish quartet help Wrexham to promotion - including Irish rugby legend's cousin

There were wild scenes in Wrexham on Saturday evening as they regained promotion to the Football League.

It has been a fairytale couple of years since celebrity owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenny took over the club with the season climaxing with a memorable victory against Boreham Wood at the weekend to secure promotion.

Wrexham have had a number of high-profile acquisitions including Premier League stalwart Ben Foster but they did have the help of an Irish quartet.

Eoghan O'Connell

Former Celtic ace Eoghan O'Connell joined the club in 2023 and has been a mainstay for Wrexham since signing in January.

The commanding center-half is the cousin of Ireland rugby legend Paul O'Connell and played a crucial part in Wrexham's run-in.

O'Connell made his first appearance at the start of February, scoring in a 2-1 victory over Altrincham and started 14 times.

Liam McAlinden

Former Ireland Under-21 Liam McAlinden joined Wrexham back in 2021 but has struggled for playing time in their push for promotion.

The winger started just twice this season and made nine substitute appearances this year.

McAlinden did feature in Wrexham's FA Cup run but has only been in the squad once in the last 13 games.

Tom O'Connor

Tom O'Connor moved to Wrexham in January 2022 from Burton Albion and had previously played for Ireland's Under-21s.

The midfielder started 16 times for Wrexham this season and played the full game against Boreham Wood on Saturday.

And the Kilkenny man scored four times this year en route to promotion.

Anthony Forde

Ballingarry man Forde signed for Wrexham at the start of the season from Oxford United.

Lining out as a right-sided midfielder, Forde started 29 times this season but was an unused substitute against Boreham Wood at the weekend.

The 29-year-old scored three times this year and had a crucial assist against Yeovil earlier in the month to put Wrexham on the verge of promotion.

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