Cleworth's 'mad' Wrexham journey as dream continues

As a 23-year-old who was playing National League football as recently as 2023, Max Cleworth could have been forgiven if he found the Championship a tough league to crack.

But the central defender is the only player in Phil Parkinson's ranks to start all 18 of his side's matches in the second tier so far this season, such is the trust the coaching staff have in the academy product.

And while nowhere close to retirement, Cleworth - who has played in different divisions in four successive seasons - says the scale of his own and the club's recent achievements may not sink in until he hangs up his boots.

"It's a bit mad to think of, where we were a few years ago," he said.

"It's something that I'll probably look back on once I've retired and just try and enjoy it at the moment."

• Wrexham AFC

Wrexham have gone from strength-to-strength in the Championship, with their last-gasp draw against Blackburn Rovers extending their unbeaten league run to eight matches.

Following a blunt opening 60 minutes at the Stok Cae Ras, the hosts ended strongly and in the fifth minute of added time had Cleworth's calf to thank for diverting Nathan Broadhead's shot into the net.

"I'm going to claim it even though it was scruffy," said Cleworth.

"I think it's come off the bottom of my calf in the end. I'm not sure how it's come off my calf but I've tried to get something on it and thankfully it's gone in."

It was the defender's first goal of the campaign, and Cleworth - who netted eight times in League One last term - now hopes he can contribute more in front of goal after breaking his Championship duck.

"I've been a bit frustrated that maybe I haven't got one or two," Cleworth said.

"I've had a couple of good chances that have either not quite got the connection or gone wide or been saved, so it's nice to finally get off the mark and hopefully I'll get a few more."

Andri Gudjohnsen's early header for Rovers brought an end to Wrexham's run of 375 minutes without conceding a Championship goal.

But the draw with Valerien Ismael's side means Wrexham have not lost at home in the league in seven matches - a pivotal factor in the Red Dragons' rise up the table.

"It's massive for us, that home form and having the fans behind us week-in week-out when we play," Cleworth said.

"We didn't start (the season) great, it took a bit of time to gel.

"I think if we can keep that fiery atmosphere going, it's hard for teams to come here and play and get anything."

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With Wrexham just three points adrift of the top six ahead of next Saturday's trip to play-off chasing Preston North End, the 2025-26 season could well be another memorable one for the north Wales side.

Having been a key cog in each of his side's three consecutive promotions under Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, Cleworth knows better than most that the sky is the limit for the club at present.

"I don't see why we can't be right up there," declared Cleworth.

"The Championship's infamous for anyone beating anyone, so if you can try and be as consistent as possible, you can see yourself fly up the league a bit, so I don't think we can put any restrictions on ourselves.

"We can be right up there and hopefully with a few more runs like this, we could be fighting for potentially promotion, so who knows.

"We won't get carried away with ourselves. It only takes a few losses in this league to bring you straight back to reality so we'll just focus on the next game and then the game after that and see where we end up."