Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac name key to Wrexham success with record set straight

Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac believe leaving football decisions to the experts has been key to their success at Wrexham. The two Hollywood stars have transformed the Welsh side's fortunes since buying the club in February 2021.

The Red Dragons have climbed from non-league obscurity into the Championship after registering three straight promotions. Reynolds and Mac have been praised in many quarters for their approach to running the football club, but the pair insist any success is down to manager Phil Parkinson and his staff, along with the players.

The co-owners were in attendance at the Racecourse Ground on Saturday to watch Wrexham's first home game in the second tier in 43 years. Unfortunately, there was no fairytale ending as their team suffered a 3-2 defeat to West Bromwich Albion, but both men were in good spirits ahead of the game.

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Speaking to , Reynolds also highlighted another benefit to distancing themselves from playing matters, as it allows them to form a closer bond with the team.

"We have a very hands-off management style," said the Deadpool actor. "Our job is to listen, learn, and tell the story, and that's a great position for any owner to be in.

"We don't make football decisions, and the great gift of that is that we're able to have relationships with the players at Wrexham, whereas most people in our position can't. We have a relationship with every single one of our players."

The positive connection the duo have with players was evident after the final whistle as they caught up with former Wrexham man Steven Fletcher, who was at the match working as a pundit for ITV. The veteran striker was released from the club in May, with the 38-year-old making it clear in a post on social media that he would've preferred to stay.

However, there was no animosity on show as he walked across the pitch laughing and joking with the celebrity owners. Mac, who recently filed to legally change his surname from McElhenney, admitted he was also surprised by the plaudits bestowed upon him and Reynolds.

"It's interesting to get accolades when you hear people say, 'Oh, you guys have done a pretty good job at the club.' The truth is we don't really have anything to do with what happens out on the pitch," he insisted.

"We've got our very specific job, which is to be clowns and to tell the story as best we can, but to be as respectful as we possibly can of what Phil does on the pitch."

Wrexham have failed to register any points in their first two Championship games after losing their opener at Southampton 2-1. But Parkinson insists there is no need to push the panic button, despite urging his players to rediscover their "grittiness" in defence.

Speaking after the West Brom game, he told The Leader: "The game is won and lost in both boxes ultimately and the goals we conceded were too soft, it's as simple as that.

"We've got to find a tenacity and defend our box better. The chances we had, could we have made the keeper work more? Yes of course, but the goals were just too soft.

"We've had starts to seasons like this before; in League Two. I remember where we were doing a lot of good things like defending properly, and we've got to get that grittiness back in our game."

He added: "A lot of the football was really good and we showed that we can compete at the level. But I didn't see too many times our players were getting freedom and space in their penalty box. We've got to look at that, and we will do, starting on Monday morning."

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