Wrexham player ratings from the Red Dragons comfortable 2-0 away win at Blackburn Rovers on New Year’s Day 2026.
Wrexham sealed the previous two Championship wins before Blackburn Rovers without sniffing a clean sheet, and the games prior to it also lacked defensive solidity from the Red Dragons. Given, Phil Parkinson’s men had begun outscoring rivals for a while there was always going to be a talking point regarding clean sheets.
More precisely, about how good Wrexham can look on the pitch if they kept things tidy at the back. Well, the 2-0 away win at Blackburn Rovers was just the statement performance Wrexham needed to display their promotion-challenging calibre.
The whole evening, Rovers were kept at the back foot by the visitors and although the Welsh outfit couldn’t get into the single digit places, it’s plain as day that moment isn’t far.
Hence, let’s rewind to yesterday’s New Year’s evening at Ewood Park to see which Wrexham players shone the most in a comfortable 2-0 win.
Wrexham player ratings from comfortable 2-0 Blackburn Rovers outing
On a scale of 10, below are the Wrexham player ratings of every starter who played a part in the 2-0 Blackburn Rovers outing.
GK: Arthur Okonkwo – 7
Okonkwo got sufficient support from Dan Scarr, Dominic Hyam and even Sam Smith in clearing the ball from dangerous crosses into the box. There was one moment when Rovers hit the woodwork, but Okonkwo’s reflexes were extremely good.
CB: Dan Scarr – 7
Kept clearing away all Blackburn Rovers crosses that came his way. Scarr also helped Wrexham gather a 2-0 cushion with an unintentional assist, which made Ollie Rathbone pull the famous Three Lions joke on New Year’s Day.
CB: Callum Doyle – 6
Doyle had his nervous moments frequently, and he must feel relieved that his poor man marking on Moussa Baradji didn’t cost Wrexham a clean sheet.
CB: Dominic Hyam – 8
Hyam’s reading of Blackburn’s attacking plays was properly spot on. Often, the Scottish defender would stick a foot out to block on target shots with the deflection on Baradji’s volley being a prime example.
Otherwise, had the Rovers midfielder netted from there, it could have been a tense finish to the evening for Wrexham.
LWB: George Thomason – 6
Floated in a ton of crosses like he usually does, but Thomason looked a bit below par without Nathan Broadhead’s presence on the left flank.
CM: Matty James – 8
Matty James is Wrexham’s “Rolls-royce” midfielder at the moment, period. James laid an inch-perfect through ball for Sam Smith’s goal and constantly won possession whenever Rovers tried lurking near the Dragons penalty area.
CDM: George Dobson – 7
Wasn’t the most comfortable midfielder on the ball, but stopped a few Blackburn counters by putting in early tackles. Dobson took a yellow card home as well, but was defensively sound nonetheless.
CM: Lewis O’Brien – 6
Brought more stability and composure to Wrexham in the middle of the park, still, every player has their weaknesses. For LOB, it’s finishing as he gets into open pockets of spaces very well, but somehow fails to beat the keeper.
RWB: Ryan Longman – 7
Swung in a brilliant grounded cross during the first half, but Sam Smith could only hit the side netting instead of scoring an early brace.
ST: Sam Smith – 9
Scored a worldie goal from the edge of the box, and got in a few good positions to bag a possible second. Also, Sam Smith was fairly unlucky in terms of assists as both Longman and Lewis O’Brien missed from close range.
ST: Ollie Rathbone – 10
Rathbone was Wrexham’s 2024/25 Player of the Year for a reason. The 29 year old brings goals, a decent bit of defending and is giving Phil Parkinson a healthy stress about picking between him and Josh Windass for the supporting striker’s role.
