Phil Parkinson doesn’t throw Arthur Okonkwo under the bus for the poor Swansea result, but calmly reminds him to do better on the next occasion.
Keeping the results & biases aside, all would agree that the Welsh derby proved to be a classic game that demands a rewatch. A contest where every replay gives insights that many missed live.
Now, for Swan fans who tasted the win, turning on the game again comes effortlessly. But, for the Wrexham fans, it’s been a haunting memory of a winnable game that turned into a nightmare.
Say it for Thomason’s miss on a 1v1 chance to bury the game, Hyam’s deflection on Vipotnik’s equaliser, or Lewis O’Brien’s unfortunate injury, each moment hits like a lightning strike on repeat.
And, Oh! How can one forget the disastrous Arthur Okonkwo slip? An error so detrimental that it robbed Wrexham of even a draw on the road.
Agreed, the description above just doesn’t synchronise with boss Phil Parkinson’s analysis of the mistake. But if one maps the manager’s verdict with the sequential play that occurred, it’s easy to see how smartly Parky called out Okonkwo, without throwing him under the bus.
As quoted by the Leader Live, Parkinson summed up the regrettable Okonkwo error, saying: “If you look at the moment, the punch hasn’t gone where he wanted it to go. He’s tried to rectify his mistake and I think Dom (Hyam) could have headed the ball out, but he’s kind of got over the top of him and they’ve almost got in each other’s way.”
Who was at fault for the Swansea defeat?
No doubt, both Arthur Okonkwo and Hyam turned out to be the tragic villains against Swansea last night. What remains a question, though, is what was avoidable and what was not?
If you’ve re-run the clip of Vipotnik’s equaliser in the 70th minute, it was Dominic Hyam’s deflection that sent Okonkwo the wrong way. Less than 20 minutes later, the keeper added to the mess, colliding with Hyam, which gifted away Swansea the complete 3 points.
Now, not to sound harsh, but Okonkwo had a clear bigger share in yesterday’s defeat than Hyam.
An unintentional deflection like Hyam isn’t rare in the pressure of a scrappy derby contest. Well, the same can’t be said for Okonkwo’s mistake, though both should’ve been avoided in the moment.
After a poor clearance in the dying minutes, Okonkwo complemented it with the worst fundamental positioning error. Not only did he make the wrong move again, but his assessment was way off in not accounting for Hyam’s presence.
Unequivocally, if the best among the defending ranks misread themselves, disaster happens. Here, Wrexham had to pay the price as the club stands still at the 15th spot, moving towards a promotion heartbreak.
Should Okonkwo be punished for this blunder?
Even the most loyal Okonkwo supporters would acknowledge the 24-year-old’s error, which cost Wrexham last night. Yet, a punishment beyond boss Parkinson’s media clarification sounds unjust and unfair.
Should fans remember, the ex-Arsenal shot stopper has been Wrexham’s saviour innumerable times now. Say it with the consecutive promotions he’s played a role in, and he feels irreplaceable.
Not to forget, still, new signing Ward was given the starting go-ahead over Okonkwo until the former got sidelined. That’s why, though Parky’s recent words seem soft, they come as a returning favour for how the keeper saved Wrexham after a forgetful start with Ward.
The bottom line is, Okonkwo, like other Wrexham players, can have his rare bad days at the office. For the Red Dragons No.1, that evening came in the Swansea game.
Hopefully, Okonkwo stars as his usual self in the next home test against Sheffield United and helps Wrexham to secure a much-needed win.
