Wrexham have a top quality goalkeeper between the sticks in Arthur Okonkwo and he may well hold the position for years to come.
Wrexham beat Wycombe Wanderers 1-0 on Saturday to move second in the League One table.
Sam Smith was the hero as his brilliant volley found the top corner, sending the travelling fans wild.
Phil Parkinson praised Smith but Wrexham also had goalkeeper Arthur Okonkwo to thank.
Okonkwo was hailed by James McClean having pulled off a sensational save to deny Wycombe and secure the 1-0 lead.
Okonkwo is still relatively early into his Wrexham career but will hope to go down as a real favourite in the years to come, just like former Wrexham star Andy Marriott.
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Photo by Jonathan Moscrop/Getty Images
Photo by Jonathan Moscrop/Getty Images
Former Wrexham goalkeeper Shwan Jalal wins Carabao Cup – as a coach
There have been so many goalkeepers passing through Wrexham over the years, from Gavin Ward to Joslain Mayebi, from Rob Lainton to Leicester City’s Danny Ward.
Some Wrexham fans will remember Shwan Jalal arriving at the STōK Cae Ras back in 2016.
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The former Tottenham Hotspur youngster joined from Macclesfield Town having previously been a regular at Bournemouth.
Jalal spent just one season at Wrexham and played 24 league games before heading back to Macclesfield in 2017.
The Iraq-born stopper turned to coaching when his playing ended in 2020, taking on goalkeeping coach roles at Rochdale’s academy and then Stockport County.
Eddie Howe then took Jalal to Newcastle United having worked together at Bournemouth in the past – and the pair have now achieved great success.
Newcastle won the Carabao Cup on Sunday afternoon, beating Liverpool 2-1 at Wembley Stadium.
That was the club’s first trophy in 56 years and first domestic trophy in 70 years, making this a moment to remember for all at Newcastle.
Jalal celebrated alongside Newcastle players as he played his part behind the scenes under Howe, some eight years since departing Wrexham.
Eddie Howe on Shwan Jalal’s coaching
Jalal won’t go down as one of the most memorable Wrexham goalkeepers, but he is making waves as a coach.
The 41-year-old works alongside Newcastle’s head of goalkeeping coaching Adam Bartlett.
Jalal has helped stoppers such as Nick Pope, Martin Dubravka, Mark Gillespie and even a former Wrexham loanee in John Ruddy.
Speaking to The Chronicle in 2022, Howe praised Jalal for his ‘high level’ coaching work, praising both him and Bartlett as ‘hard working’.
“All of the staff have a key role with the goalkeeping staff. We have a good goalkeeping team here. Shwan and Adam do sterling work with us, very committed. They are hard working,” said Howe.
“It’s high level work that they (the goalkeeper staff) do. They take great pride in Nick Pope’s performances but all of the goalkeeping team that we have, the whole coaching staff we have here now, is really strong and hopefully the players get what they need,” he added.
Jalal will now be on cloud nine and Wrexham will hope to join him with success of their own before the end of the season with promotion the target.