NOT having a match on Boxing Day will seem so strange for Wrexham fans who 22 years ago were preparing to take on Manchester City at The Racecourse.

Talk about heading in different directions since.

There were 2,700 City fans in the 9,048 gate and they went home happy thanks to right back Gerard Wiekens’ only goal of the game.

Ian Rush led the Reds line while former Wrexham striker Gareth Taylor did the same for City, and another ex-Red - Jim Whitley - came off the bench for Joe Royle’s side.

Wrexham did have something to shout about in the return game, keeper Mark Cartwright having the game of his life at Maine Road in a goal-less draw.

Wrexham managed only one victory on Boxing Day under Brian Flynn’s reign in the Nineties and it came at Crewe in the 1992/93 promotion season.

Just 42 days earlier Wrexham had been shunted 6-1 by The Railwayman in an FA Cup catastrophe. But revenge was sweet at Gresty Road with Gary Bennett grabbing the winner.

Wrexham have won two more than they’ve lost of their 85 matches on this day with the non-league era and their last seven seasons in League Two proving the most productive point-wise.

In 12 seasons in the fifth tier, Wrexham have played 10 matches on Boxing Day and won six of them. The most memorable was the Reds thrashing big spending Salford City 5-1 in 2018, Shaun Pearson, Akil Wright, Brad Walker, Ben Tollitt and Chris Holroyd scoring at a packed Racecourse.

In 2012, Wrexham beat Telford 4-1 and there were also plenty of goals last season as the Reds triumphed 3-1 at home to Chorley. JJ Hooper was on target twice in the opening 10 minutes and on-loan star Omari Patrick made sure of the points.

There were 1-0 wins against Southport in 2014 and 2016, and the Reds also overcame Telford 2-0 in 2011.

In the 2008-9 campaign - Wrexham’s first in non-league - Jefferson Louis netted a last minute equaliser as the Reds drew 1-1 at Barrow, the same result when the teams met at Holker Street in 2017.

Wrexham’s two defeats were in 2013 and 2015 against Alfreton (3-2) and Southport (1-0) respectively.

Wrexham were unbeaten on December 26 in the first seven seasons of the new Millennium before a 2-0 reverse at Rochdale in the final Football League season before suffering the dreaded drop.

They beat Port Vale 1-0 in 2000 thanks to a Craig Faulconbridge goal while Waynne Phillips and Lee Trundle scored 12 months later in a 2-1 success at Notts County as the Reds beat the Magpies in the battle of the oldest club in England versus the oldest one in Wales.

Paul Barrett scored a rare goal in the 1-0 victory at Stockport County in 2003 while win number four came at home to Rochdale two years later. Matty Crowell’s penalty put Denis Smith’s side on their way with captain Darren Ferguson bagging the winner.

The 1950s and the years before that were even better with 14 wins and 12 losses from their 32 games.

The Sixties weren’t exactly swinging with just two wins to shout about.

The best one was in 1961 at Chesterfield where Mickey Metcalf, Ken Barnes, Ron Barnes and Peter Jones scored in a 5-1 victory.

Back-to-back derby defeats at home and away to Shrewsbury in 1963 and 1962 didn’t go down well and there were no great steps in 1969 to please the Reds fans as ‘over the moon’ Chester supporters left Sealand Road with a 2-0 victory to celebrate.

It was honours even with the old enemy in the Super Seventies as John Lyons scored Wrexham’s goal in a 1-1 draw in front of a 10,800 Sealand Road attendance.

The wins came in 1970 - a rare success at Port Vale as Billy Ashcroft, Albert Kinsey and Ray Smith netted in a 3-0 triumph. Three years later, Dave Smallman scored the only goal of the game at Tranmere.

With Wrexham’s fall as dramatic as their rise in the Eighties, it told with the 5,756 crowd for the 2-0 derby win against Chester in 1983, right back Jake King and midfielder Ian Arkwright on the scoresheet.

Less than 4,000 bothered to turn up 12 months later as Chester gained revenge with a 2-1 win, Andy Edwards the Reds scorer.

The best win of that decade was at Turf Moor in 1988 where Dixie McNeil’s men beat Burnley 3-1 courtesy of Jon Bowden, Ollie Kearns and Geoff Hunter.

NON LEAGUE YEARS: P 10; W 6; D 2; L 2

2000s: P 8; W 4; D 3; L 1; 1990s: P 9; W 1; D 4; L 4; 1980s: P 9; W 2; D 5; L 2; 1970s: P 8; W 2; D 3; L 3; 1960s: P 9; W 2; D 2; L 5; 1950s: P 9; W 4; D 1; L 4

PRE 1950: P 23; W 10; D 5; L 8

FULL RECORD: P 85; W 31; D 25; L 29