Trailblazer | Part 19 | Americas Influx in North Wales

A dramatic injury-time winner saw Bay FC claim their maiden NWSL Championship and Freja Holm become the 11th greatest women’s football manager in November 2039. The 49-year-old Swede added the American title to those won in Italy, Japan and France, leaving, in theory, titles in Australia, Denmark, England, Germany, Spain, Sweden and Wales to tick off her Trailblazer challenge.

Upon resigning in late November, there were, unsurprisingly, no interesting jobs available. That situation lasted through to the start of the 2040s, with the only jobs available being the Australian roles that still haven’t been filled in six years. It took until March for any other roles to become available and, with all due respect, an interesting challenge saw Holm take a massive step down the football pyramid.

Who Are Wrexham?

Wrexham AFC Women, known in Welsh as Merched Clwb Pêl-droed Cymdeithas Wrecsam, is a semi-professional club based in Wrexham, in North Wales. The club was first formed in 2009 as NEWI Wrexham Ladies and then Wrexham Ladies F.C. and reformed in 2018, which saw it affiliated with the men’s football club Wrexham AFC. The reformed club joined the North Wales Women’s Football League, winning the League Cup and gaining promotion in their first season.

The arrival of Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney in November 2020 was quickly followed by a restructuring of the Welsh league system. The Adran North and Adran South tier two supported the top-tier Adran Premier, and Wrexham entered the Adran North. They lost to Llandudno in the first season, but went one better a year later, earning promotion to Adran Premier in April 2023 and turning semi-pro as a result.

Wrexham finished 3rd in their first season in Adran Premier and have built on that during this save, winning their first title in 2026 and adding five more over the next 12 years. The club also won its first two Welsh Cups in 2037 and 2038. However, despite being favourites for the league this season, Wrexham found themselves in a relegation battle, finishing 6th in the eight-team league, only picking up 23 points in 18 games and avoiding relegation by just 4 points.

Wrexham play at the 3,500-capacity The Rock in Cefn Mawr, which is supported by adequate training facilities, average youth facilities, adequate academy coaching and fairly basic youth recruitment. Surprisingly, Wrexham have £1.1m in the bank with £62k in the transfer kitty and £3,350 available in the weekly transfer budget of £8,000, largely due to a mass of players on non-contract deals. Holm got rid of most of those, leaving Wrexham’s best players as versatile midfielder Ashley Griffiths, goalkeeper Amani Deane, Brazilian centre back Débora, Australian defender Ruby Swaby and centre back Ange Froger.

Holm was surprised to see a host of promising players available on free transfers and, given Wales’s lack of registration rules, she decided to completely reshape the underperforming Wrexham squad. That began with an influx of exciting South Americans led by Argentinian left back Valeria Flores Olvera, along with Brazilian centre back Paula, Paraguayan midfielder Araceli Raggio, Chilean midfielder Valentina Funck and right back Gabriela Espejo. She snapped up 10 more players when the wider transfer window opened in mid-July, including brilliantly named American striker Beatriz Da Cruz Rodrigues and her compatriots midfielder Meredith Harper, striker Yama Mahmet and centre back Julie Arellano, Mexican midfielder Liliana Vite and centre back Isla Halfpenny-Gaffney.

Holm was looking to play a positive, possession-hungry style that built through a strong midfield. She initially considered a 3-5-2 approach using advanced wing backs, but decided she needed to be a bit more offensive, leaning towards a variation on a 2-5-3 dropping into a 4-1-3-2.

A Flying Start in Wales

The bookies clearly rated Holm’s transfer activity, tipping Wrexham as 1/16 favourites to win Adran Premier. Furthermore, six Wrexham players were named in the media dream 11 and the five “key players” in the league are all Holm’s summer recruits. Their nearest challengers will be holders Swansea City (20/1), TNS (25/1) and Pure Swansea, Barry Town United and Cardiff City (50/1).

Holm’s first game in Wales was at home to Pure Swansea and, without the injured Da Cruz Rodrigues, they took a while to get going but Funck and striker Isabelle Estcourt earned a 2-1 win. A week later, they went to Pontypridd, battered them with 12 shots inside 25 minutes and eventually went in front as a brilliant Olvera run teed up Estcourt. Harper curled in a wonderful 25-yard freekick and the wasteful Mehmet finally scored late on. Next up, Barry went ahead without having a shot, but Wrexham responded with Griffiths scoring, then creating two in a minute for Estcourt and Olvera. Barry got one back before Mehmet scored a 25-yard piledriver and the visitors somehow gifted two late consolations that left Holm fuming at her defence.

Wrexham again conceded early at TNS but Olvera, Estcourt and Espejo earned a commanding 3-1 victory. Another Harper screamer gave them a better start at home to newly promoted Connah’s Quay, before Vite, Da Cruz Rodriguez, Halfpenny-Gaffney and Raggio all scored their first Wrexham goals in a new club record 7-1 annihilation.

The domination continued as Mehmet’s hat trick inspired a 6-1 hammering of Pontypridd before Ragio and Da Cruz Rodrigues earned a 2-1 win at Pure Swansea. Wrexham finally dropped points with a 3-2 defeat at Barry before another at home to TNS, with a team hit by seven international call-ups. But they bounced back with a wasteful 1-0 win at Connah’s Quay.

Hunting Down the Welsh Title

Wrexham began 2041 refreshed and claimed a 2-0 win at home to Swansea, which restored their 7-point lead. Da Cruz Rodrigues bagged a hat trick to down Cardiff 5-1 and a rare Funck screamer earned another win at Cardiff, this time 2-0, in a run of three successive games against the club from the capital in all competitions. Mehmet’s first-half header earned a tight 1-0 win at home to Swansea, which set a new club record for league wins and took Wrexham within one point of the title with four games remaining.

A week later, they got their first shot at the title at home to Barry. Wrexham missed a host of chances before Raggio finally turned home from close range just after halftime and an own goal secured a 2-1 win. And, despite the lack of a title lift, that was enough to move Wrexham level with Swansea on seven Welsh titles.

Wrexham AFC Women won Adran Premier!

Wrexham celebrated the title with a 3-0 win at Swansea, dominated Cardiff 3-1 led by a Mehmet brace and wrapped up the season with another 3-1 victory at Barry. That saw Wrexham finish the season on 54 points after 18 wins, 0 draws and 2 defeats, scoring 55 and conceding 18. Wrexham had the four best players in the league, with Olvera leading the way with a ludicrous 7.79 average rating, followed by Griffiths and Estcourt (7.45) and Da Cruz Rodrigues (7.42). Mehmet was 3rd top scorer with 11, with Da Cruz Rodrigues and Estcourt in 5th and 6th on 10 and 8. While Olvera and Raggio led the way with 8 assists followed by Griffiths with 7. As a result, Olvera won Player of the Season and Young Player of the Season, Deane won the Golden Glove, eight Wrexham players made the Team of the Season, and Holm won Manager of the Season.

Chasing A Domestic Treble

Wrexham cruised through the two domestic cups in Wales, beating Newport City 5-0, Cardiff 5-1, in which Da Cruz Rodrigues scored 4, and Barry 4-0 to reach the Welsh Trophy Final, then Llanfair 8-1, Cardiff 3-1 and non-league Kinmel Bay 6-0 led by a Mehmet hat trick to reach the Welsh Cup Final.

First up, Wrexham faced non-league side Llandudno in the Welsh Trophy Final in late February. Olvera was on international duty with Argentina, but they bossed the game and eventually scored through Raggio’s half volley. She then smashed home a penalty before Harper curled in a spectacular freekick to cruise to an easy 3-0 win.

Two months later, they took on Barry Town United in the Welsh Cup Final at the Swansea.com Stadium with a chance to win a domestic treble. Wrexham got a flyer with another classic Harper screamer, hitting a 25-yard volley sweetly into the top corner. Three minutes later, Raggio’s penalty doubled the lead and Olvera played Da Cruz Rodrigues in to make it three just after halftime and Griffiths chipped Mehmet through for a fourth.

Wrexham AFC Women wrapped up a domestic treble!

Celebrating A Welsh Treble

Holm knew her summer transfer window had been successful, and was delighted to see it come to fruition by dominating Wales in 2040/41. Da Cruz Rodrigues and Mehmet led the way with 19 goals and 5 assists each, while Raggio was superb with an incredible 17 goals and 15 assists. But the star of the squad was very much Olvera, who scored 6 goals with 15 assists and an 8.08 average rating in 24 games playing in Holm’s preferred advanced wingback role. Estcourt also impressed with 10 goals in 17 games and Griffiths delivered 14 assists from right wingback.

Holm really enjoyed rebuilding this Wrexham squad but, with the Welsh title in the bag, she knew it was time to move on. She departs Wales after 29 games, of which she won 27 and lost 2, scoring 99 and conceding 22, leaving Wrexham with a ridiculous 90% win ratio.

Where would Holm end up after leaving Wales? Join us on Monday to find out!