There wasn’t much time for clear thought as the clock ticked up to midnight in Wrexham on Saturday.
In the 1864 Suite at the football ground, players Paul Mullin and Elliot Lee were up on a table, belting out American Pie. In the Turf pub next door, people were routinely walking into each other. This can happen when the drinking has started at midday.
But Brittnie Fields, from Huntsville, Alabama, was sober as she described why she wanted to be here, in a town she had until recently never heard of, on the day the football club won promotion to a league she knew nothing about.
‘Everyone wants the latest new thing now, don’t they?’ she said. ‘The latest shiny trend and fashion.
‘This place stayed the same. Just as it always was. Lived with its struggles. Its team lived in non-League. But the place kept hope and stayed true to itself.’
Paul Mullin (middle) has helped end Wrexham’s 15-year exile from the Football League
Rob McElhenney (left) and Ryan Reynolds (right) attract lots of new fans in USA and Canada
Out across town, among the raggle-taggle groups near the chip shop on Regent Street and in homes on the Caia Park estate, where poverty walks and ‘levelling up’ never came, some would have perhaps winced to hear this slightly romanticised talk of struggle. They would have said that it was something people could have well done without.
Mail Sport’s Ian Herbert was at the Racecourse Ground on Saturday night to see Wrexham clinch promotion with a 3-1 win
But this young woman, who’d travelled 4,000 miles without so much as a ticket for Wrexham v Boreham Wood, was right. Wrexham has prevailed and the club has been central to it: a metaphor for its fundamental optimism. Promotion this year. Or maybe next.
US and Canadian sports teams’ fortunes do not impinge on the psychology of a community in this way. There’s no real jeopardy. No endless rollercoaster of promotion and relegation.
That’s another reason why Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds’ Welcome to Wrexham documentary has appealed across the Atlantic, said Canadian Sandy Domingos-Shipley, who was also standing on the beer-sodden carpet of the Turf at midnight. The Toronto Maple Leafs have not won ice hockey’s Stanley Cup since 1967, she said. But no one really hurts because of it.
Sandy has been coordinating group trips of Canadians to Wrexham games all season — 60 of them for Farnborough in the FA Cup, 15 for Wealdstone in the league — and has become such a regular presence that a local family has become her touchstone, always ready to collect her when she arrives.
This is how it has become, as Wrexhamers respond to others finding something good in their place. Americans are routinely scooped up and taken out from the Turf on impromptu short tours of the town.
Wrexham fans have navigated plenty of hard times and are now enjoying an upward trajectory
Seeing them lift the league title after so long proves that football remains the beautiful game
Mail Sport’s Ian Herbert (left) at Upton Park in 1992 with his dad, brother Pete and his mum
The response to a positive spotlight would be the same in towns the length and breadth of our country, though the story is special to me because Wrexham is my town. The place to which for years my brother Pete and I took the 1pm Saturday train from Chirk, in the nearby Ceiriog Valley, heading to the chippy, then the ground.
A black and white picture I’ve kept from then tells my story of Wrexham FC. There’s Dad, Pete and me and even Mum, just about visible, who also came along that day. It radiates happiness and you’d never have known that we’d done the trip twice.
We were at Upton Park in January 1992, for an FA Cup fourth-round tie, and the first time we’d caught the coach we made it to Toddington Services on the M1 when they called the game off, sending us all the way back to Wrexham. We travelled again a week later. That pretty much summed up the general experience.
And then, from a personal perspective, the beautiful simplicities of football drained away. Writing about this sport in the white heat of these times — when the game is such a religion that everyone takes an observation or challenge as a personal slight or act of sacrilege — made it increasingly hard to love.
There’s some fairly vicious social media abuse, right now, and some of the army of people managing the images of top clubs and players seem to find malicious intent in everything you write.
The new chapter in my club’s story has been a reminder that there’s still far more to it than the anger. Wrexham put the joy back.
In a sport which is full of anger and abuse online, Wrexham’s story is breaking the mould
You might not have heard of some who have made this so.
People like Humphrey Ker — a friend and creative collaborator of McElhenney and the owners’ de facto local ambassador, who has forged so many links in the town. Fleur Robinson, the club’s unassuming chief executive who has done every job imaginable as the world has crowded in on a club with a very small infrastructure. Steve Horowitz, a financier from New York’s Inner Circle Sports, whom McElhenney first approached about buying a club.
‘Be careful with whichever one you land at,’ Horowitz told him and Reynolds. ‘It’s theirs, not yours.’ He quoted them Bill Shankly’s line about football, life and death. They listened.
McElhenney and Reynolds kept it more low-key than usual at the weekend, despite the profusion of images of them which flowed. They seemed to have decided this was a time for the team and the town.
‘To be welcomed into the community, into this experience, has been the honour of my life,’ McElhenney said at the end of it all.
Yes, football really is a beautiful game. It’s taken new friends from America and Canada to remind me of that.
Take FA Cup semi-finals off Wembley
There was a serviceable railway network from the North to the South when the FA decided, in their desperation to meet the repayments for Wembley Stadium, that all FA Cup semi-finals would be staged there.
That railway network is a shambles now; the ultimate emblem of the North/South divide, as only those in the North really know.
The tepid atmosphere at Wembley as Man City eased Sheffield United aside calls for a rethink
What wouldn’t I have given to take my grandson to an FA Cup semi-final involving one of the great Manchester teams at the weekend, at one of the great stadiums which have hosted that fixture over the years?
The tepid atmosphere at Manchester City v Sheffield United on Saturday said it all. A ground like Goodison or Villa Park would have been bouncing. The boy watched on TV instead.
What will it take for Italians to tackle racist filth?
The Italian authorities have taken the best part of three weeks to conclude that sending off Romelu Lukaku for having the temerity to challenge the bigots, who were racially abusing him throughout Inter’s 1-1 draw at Juventus, was dim and deeply offensive.
Lukaku gave a bit back in front of that intellectually-challenged group, having listened to their racist filth in the Coppa Italia semi-final first leg.
A ‘shush’ gesture after he’d scored offended a busy little official who issued a second yellow for ‘provocation’.
It’s the second leg in Milan on Wednesday night and Lukaku won’t be surprised to find more of the same hate heading his way.
What would it take for the Italian FA to start tackling the racism which at times makes their game so utterly antediluvian?
Romelu Lukaku made a ‘shush’ gesture towards a section of Juventus fans that were racially abusing him after he scored. He was sent off but has since had his suspension overturned
Time to deal with Toney
It has been five months since Brentford’s Ivan Toney was charged with 262 breaches of FA rules governing betting on football and two months since he accepted many of them.
So why, teams competing with Brentford might very reasonably ask, is he still running out for the club every week? And when will the case actually be dealt with?
Toney has scored 19 of Brentford’s 48 Premier League goals and put them in a position of safety. Those clubs fighting for their lives below them will feel that the time it’s taking to ban Toney has been helpful in the extreme for his team.
I asked the FA about this. They say there are no updates and there is no timeline.
sports lottery
General Billing Rules
The early settlement function is only applicable to some live betting markets, and members can make early settlement when the betting is live. Please forgive me if you find any inconvenience caused by "all transactions will be canceled after a live ball is scored".
The advance settlement amount already includes the principal, please note!
The "Odds" or "Markets" for all events determine the amount of early settlement. If the amount changes or the opening of the market is suspended during early settlement, it may lead to the failure of early settlement. If the event has not yet concluded, the early settlement function may appear again.
If the system successfully accepts the early settlement of the bet, the member will not be able to cancel the transaction that has been settled in advance. The amount of bets that are successfully settled in advance will be directly returned to the member's account, and the bet will no longer be affected by the final settlement and official results of the betting event.
If the bet that was successfully settled in advance is canceled for some reason (such as VAR assistance-goals are not counted), the amount of the bet that was settled in advance will be deducted from the member's account. If the event has not ended yet, the early settlement function may appear again, otherwise the betting will be based on the event or official final result. The company reserves the right of final interpretation, please pay attention!
When this website announces the early settlement amounts of all events, if any typos or unintentional human errors occur, the company reserves the right to cancel any bets with wrong early settlement amounts and publish them with information, please pay attention!
The company reserves the right to turn on or off the early settlement function of any event, and to cancel or reject the player's early settlement transaction.
In case of event cancellation or cut in half, the bets settled in advance after the interruption of the event will be cancelled, the amount settled in advance of the bet will be deducted from the member's account and the original betting amount will be returned; the bets settled in advance before the interruption of the event will still be considered It is a "valid bet slip".
Sports Event Casino Handicap Description
| PK | 0 | It means not giving in to each other, and winning 1 point wins all. |
| 0-50 | 0/0.5 | Indicates that when the handicap team is tied with the transferee team, the team betting on the handicap loses 50%. |
| 0 loss | 0.5 | Indicates that when the handicap team is tied with the transferee team, the team betting on the handicap loses. |
| 1+50 | 0.5/1 | When the handicap team wins the handicap team by 1 point, the team betting on the handicap wins 50% and wins all 2 points. |
| 1 level | 1 | Indicates that when the handicap team wins the handicap team by 1 point, the two teams will tie and win by 2 points. |
| 1-50 | 1/1.5 | When the handicap team wins the handicap team by 1 point, the team betting on the handicap loses 50% and wins all 2 points. |
| 1 loss | 1.5 | When the handicap team wins the handicap team by 1 point, the team betting on the handicap loses all and wins by 2 points. |
| 2+50 | 1.5/2 | When the handicap team wins the handicap team by 2 points, the team betting on the handicap wins 50% and wins all 3 points. |
| 2 flat | 2 | Indicates that when the handicap team wins the handicap team by 2 points, the two teams will tie and win all 3 points. |
| 2 losses | 2/2.5 | When the handicap team wins the handicap team by 2 points, the team betting on the handicap loses 50% and wins all 3 points. |
| 3+50 | 2.5 | When the handicap team wins the handicap team by 2 points, the team betting on the handicap loses all and wins all 3 points. |
| 3 losses | 2.5/3 | When the handicap team wins the handicap team by 3 points, the team betting on the handicap wins 50%, and all 4 points win. |
| 3 levels | 3 | Indicates that when the handicap team wins the handicap team by 3 points, the two teams will tie and win all 4 points. |
| 3-50 | 3/3.5 | When the handicap team wins the handicap team by 3 points, the team betting on the handicap loses 50% and wins all 4 points. |
| 3 losses | 3.5 | When the handicap team wins the handicap team by 3 points, the team betting on the handicap loses all and wins all 4 points. |
It is not uncommon to play bingo and three-star lottery in the lottery, and even out of the trend of the times. In addition to these basic lottery games, the online Luck9 casino also provides "Beijing Racing", "Hong Kong Horse Racing", "Bingo", etc., which can be said to be the most popular betting items in Taiwan. In addition to the public welfare lottery betting types issued by the government itself, DG Baccarat also has the most abundant and diverse combinations, allowing players to freely match the size, single and double, and string games, and get the best odds in Oberbet. The gameplay is diverse, so it is very popular among JILIACE casino players
Entertainment city evaluation details
The leading brand of Luck9 online casino gaming in the world, registered in the legal gaming industry in the Philippines and other countries, with millions of registered players. Legal business licenses with gaming industry markets include JILIACE Casino and KG Casino.
Provide the gaming experience of a real casino, Luck9 Baccarat, Salon Baccarat, DG Baccarat, WM Baccarat, KU Baccarat, BET Racing, BET Horse Racing, P8Poker, BS Blackjack, KU Sports , KU sports, BS slot machine, UC8 slot machine, salon slot machine, AV actress baccarat and other casino games.
While players are having fun in JILIACE Casino and LUCK9 Casino, we are also committed to product development and updates, so that our games fully support PC, tablet, and mobile phones. Customers can get started directly without downloading or installing.
It has been continuously providing distinctive deposit discounts and other promotional activities for the loyal customers of the casino. Open an account at LUCK9 Casino and enjoy all the online entertainment offers and the top gaming experience beyond your imagination.
LUCK9 casino provides your favorite sports betting. Such as the English Premier League (English Premier League), Spanish League, Champions League, Ligue 1, Bundesliga, Serie A, NFL, NBA, NCAA, women's basketball, volleyball, F4 racing, etc. Provide you with more than 4,000 live football matches for you to bet on every month.
In the live casino, you can enjoy the entire luxury casino and beautiful Taiwanese dealers. LUCK9 Casino and KG Casino have a variety of products for you to choose from, such as Live Baccarat, Live Sic Bo, Live Dragon Tiger and Live Roulette. You can also choose easy-to-use online slot machines or BET lottery to pass the time.
The only casino preferred LUCK9 casino.
Baccarat is a poker game and one of the most common games in casinos. Baccarat originated in Italy, was introduced to France in the 15th century, and was popular in Britain and France in the 19th century. Today, baccarat is one of the most popular games played in Luck9 casinos around the world. Among casinos in Macau, the number of baccarat gaming tables is the largest among Luck9 casinos in the world. The special feature of baccarat is that it adopts the first deal and then the betting method. After the dealer deals the cards, players can choose the position they want to bet on and make bets. The game process is more fair and impartial.
Online gaming refers to games played with other players over the Internet. Common online games include role-playing games, strategy games, shooting games, racing games, board games, etc. Players can fight or compete with other players or computers via the Internet, and can communicate and cooperate with other players.
The benefits of online gambling include:
Convenience: The game can be played anytime and anywhere, no specific equipment or venue is required.
Diversity: You can choose a variety of different games to meet different preferences and needs.
Social: You can communicate and cooperate with other players to increase your social network.
Competition: You can compete with other players to improve your skills and abilities.
Entertainment: Can bring entertainment and relaxation to players.
However, online gambling also has some risks and problems, such as addiction, time consumption, money transactions involved, and so on. Therefore, you need to pay attention to self-protection when playing online games, and abide by the rules of the game and relevant laws and regulations.
Here are some common sports betting plays:
Winning the Game: This is one of the most common sports betting variants where players bet on which team or athlete will win the game before it starts.
Handicap Market: This bet is based on point difference, and punters must predict whether the winner's point difference is greater or less than a preset point difference.
Over/Under: This bet is based on the total points scored in the game, and punters must predict whether the total points in the game will be greater or less than the preset score.
Specific Event Markets: This type of betting usually involves specific events in the game, such as first score, player scoring, free throw percentage, etc., and the punter must predict whether the specific event will occur or be achieved.
Online betting: This type of play refers to betting while the game is in progress, and the punter can change the bet at any time and make a decision based on the real-time situation of the game.
It should be noted that sports betting is a high-risk gambling activity that needs to be treated with caution. It is recommended to gamble on legal betting websites and bet according to your own financial ability.
Recommended Online Casinos by Country
Recommended online casinos by country
| 國家 Country | 線上娛樂城名稱 Online Casino Name | 熱門評分 Popular Score | 賭場評分 Casino Rating |
| 台灣 TaiWan | THA娛樂城 | ★★★★ | ★★★★ |
| 台灣 TaiWan | HKING娛樂城 | ★★★★ | ★★★★ |
| 台灣 TaiWan | 富遊娛樂城 | ★★★★ | ★★★★ |
| 台灣 TaiWan | 玖天娛樂城 | ★★★★ | ★★★★ |
| 台灣 TaiWan | 899電子遊戲城 | ★★★★ | ★★★★ |
| 台灣 TaiWan | KING GAME娛樂城/KG娛樂城 | ★★★☆ | ★★★☆ |
| 菲律賓 Philippines | LUCK9 Online Casino | ★★★☆ | ★★★☆ |
| 菲律賓 Philippines | KingGame Online Casino/KG Online Casino | ★★★☆ | ★★★☆ |
| 菲律賓 Philippines | OKBET Online Casino | ★★★☆ | ★★★☆ |
| 菲律賓 Philippines | JILIBET Online Casino | ★★★☆ | ★★★☆ |
| 越南 Vietnam | THA Online Casino | ★★★★ | ★★★★ |
| 越南 Vietnam | KUBET Online Casino | ★★★★ | ★★★★ |
| 香港 HongKong | 8VITORY娛樂城 | ★★★★ | ★★★★ |
| 香港 HongKong | STARWIN娛樂城 | ★★★★ | ★★★★ |