Former Bluebirds winger Jobi McAnuff is on a Welsh mission – and he has Wrexham in his sights.
Former West Ham and Crystal Palace playmaker McAnuff, now aged 37, is in a Leyton Orient team who are top of the Vanarama National League.
He joined the Bluebirds from West Ham and made almost 50 appearances before moving on to Crystal Palace in 2005.
The O’s travel to North Wales on Saturday where they take on the third-placed Dragons at their Racecourse home stadium.
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Former Newport County manager player Justin Edinburgh is in charge of Orient and their clash with Wrexham is the biggest fixture in non-League football this weekend.
Wrexham would love to beat Orient in a match which looks crucial to the race for promotion. There is added spice because Edinburgh was Newport manager when they defeated the Reds in the 2013 Conference Premier play-off final.
The Exiles went back into the Football League, while Wrexham stayed at Conference level.
Manager Sam Ricketts has built a team who will battle for each other over the 90 minutes and have a fair bit of skill in their line-up, while Orient will believe they have extra flair.
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Former Spurs defender Edinburgh is far more experience than his opposite number, having been in charge of almost 500 first team matches, but Ricketts is a man who believes in himself and his team.
He has a disciplined, clinical team at the Racecourse who have to shut down the creative McAnuff.
“These are the games you don’t have to get yourself up for,” says Ricketts. “From the moment you wake up, you are ready to play in these big games – and this is certainly one of them.”
Wrexham are unbeaten at home, while Orient have not lost away.
The Dragons are also defending an 11-match unbeaten run in all competitions, which was extended by Brad Walker’s deflected equaliser at Maidstone.
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And Ricketts called on his players to keep their standards high in order to keep the good run of form going.
Ricketts delivered an injury update with Doug Tharme and Manny Smith ruled out by injuries.
Smith is back in training and Ricketts says: “If I asked Manny if he was ready to play, he’d say yes. But we are not in a situation where I have to rush him.”
Rekeil Pyke has recovered from a knock suffered against Maidstone.
Former Colchester striker Macauley Bonne has been key to the success of Orient this season, scoring 15 goals.
Wrexham’s Paul Rutherford insists the Dragons will be up for the challenge and says: “These are the games you want to be involved in.
“The top-of-the-table clashes can define seasons.
“We’ve earned the right for this to be a big game. It’s one everyone will put down as a six-pointer.
“When the fans are behind us and the Racecourse is bouncing there are not too many more formidable places to come, certainly in this league.
“If we get all those formulas right and it’s a good start on Saturday, then I think it will be a difficult afternoon for Orient.
“Equally, they’re a good side. They’re not top of the league by chance. It’s going to be a tough test and we need to show everyone why we’re one of the top three sides in the league. It’s going to be an occasion that we’ll savour.”
Vanarama National League – top five
| P | W | D | L | GD | PTS | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leyton Orient | 20 | 12 | 7 | 1 | +27 | 43 |
| 2 | Salford | 20 | 12 | 6 | 2 | +24 | 42 |
| 3 | Wrexham | 20 | 12 | 6 | 2 | +16 | 42 |
| 4 | Solihull M | 20 | 12 | 3 | 5 | +11 | 39 |
| 5 | Harrogate T | 19 | 10 | 7 | 2 | +16 | 37 |