Steven Fletcher’s acrobatic finish proved decisive as the visitors failed to turn their possession into goals, boosting the Welsh side’s hopes of automatic promotion from League Two.
But the Magpies thought they had levelled the contest in the second-half when David McGoldrick flashed the ball beyond Arthur Okonkwo, but referee Carl Brook ruled out the goal for handball, something upon later inspection looked to be a harsh decision.
It’s safe to say that the decision to exclude McGoldrick’s goal against Wrexham did not sit well with the Notts County supporters, especially given the incident’s video was posted on social media not long after it happened.
Even the manager, Stuart Maynard, expressed his frustration with the ruling to BBC Radio Nottingham, saying that the Wrexham players’ response ought to have served as a cue to the referee that the goal ought to have remained.
“The real frustration is that we probably deserve a point, minimum,” Maynard stated.
“We have watched the video back on Didzy’s goal, it’s a clear goal so we have scored a legitimate goal that should have stood, and it’s frustrating because we go away with nothing.
“It hits his chest around the stomach area, it’s as clean as you can see, I don’t see where he sees the handball from. If you look at the reaction, in football, we always look at the reaction of the opposition players. They are all going back to the halfway line, the players are already thinking that the goal has been given.
“That is how you judge it a lot of the time and that’s how you should as a referee. If you have that little grey area as a referee on whether it should be or shouldn’t be, you have just got to look at the opposition reaction. It’s hugely frustrating, but there were loads of positives.”
Notts’ position in League Two play-off race
The race for the play-offs is still very close for a number of League Two clubs as the season approaches its final stretch.
A string of performances at this time might be vital come April, since there are just two points separating Harrogate Town in the final play-off spot and Newport County, who are now in 14th place.
The Magpies had secured their spot in the final play-off spot ahead of play on Saturday after defeating Graham Coughlan’s team 3-1 in the middle of the week. This was Maynard’s first victory as the team’s manager since replacing Luke Williams in January.
Even though there are still plenty of points to be won, Notts would still be in the play-off spots if McGoldrick’s goal had stayed because of their greater goal differential over Harrogate. As a result, they will need to make sure they stay in contact with the teams in their immediate vicinity.
This weekend, the Magpies make their way back to Meadow Lane to take on Crewe Alexandra, who are just outside of the automatic promotion spots. Following that, they will host Sutton United, the bottom club in the East Midlands, for the final game of February.
The team has demonstrated that they can compete with the best in the division despite returning to the Football League for the first time in four years. However, they are aware that the next weeks of the season will be critical to keeping their dreams of back-to-back promotions alive.
Leave a Reply