Wrexham's win on penalties over Hull City in Tuesday's League Cup first-round meeting has helped them kickstart their campaign after a disappointing loss to Southampton in the Championship, the Welsh club's manager Phil Parkinson said.
Jack Marriott scored the winning penalty as Wrexham beat Hull 5-3 on penalties, after substitute Ollie Palmer scored twice in added time to force a penalty shootout following a 3-3 draw.
Wrexham, co-owned by Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds and fellow Hollywood A-lister American Rob McElhenney, were defeated in their first English second-tier game for 43 years on Saturday as Southampton scored two late goals to snatch a 2-1 win.
"I said to the lads, you know, we're not coming into this division just to set up and to stop teams, we can play," Parkinson said in an interview with club media.
"But one thing's for sure, the spirit, what we're all about was there for all to see, which is really important for the new lads who have joined us to see that we go right to the end. We had a huge disappointment on Saturday.
"And we've got our season off and running with a result tonight. Tonight, it was good to get a result and get through to the next round and show everybody what we're all about."
The moment that we secured victory, courtesy of Jack Marriott 🎯
— Wrexham AFC (@Wrexham_AFC) August 12, 2025
🔴⚪️ #WxmAFC pic.twitter.com/5YXxtNXJvM
Parkinson added that the home win over Hull had helped Wrexham acclimatise to their revamped Racecourse Ground stadium, ahead of their meeting with West Bromwich Albion on Saturday.
"It's great taste for us tonight. We needed the game on our new pitch," he added.
"Dugouts on that side, a lot of new players, obviously all not starting for various reasons. We needed this stress rehearsal, really, in a competitive game."
Wrexham's popularity has sky-rocketed on both sides of the Atlantic due to the North American owners and the smash hit "Welcome to Wrexham" documentary.