Being the guest of honour at the unveiling of a new kit for Wrexham AFC was a dream come true for lifelong fan Russell Williams.
Ifor Williams Trailers WFC New kit launch; Pictured is Wrexham player Jake Lawlor with Russel Williams from Ifor Williams Trailers , Maisie Scragg,10 and Callum Hogan, 6.
The engineering draughtsman from Lloc, near Holywell, works for Ifor Williams Trailers who are the club’s main front of shirt sponsors.
Having already launched the home and away kits before the season began, the club now needs a third strip for games when neither will do because of a clash of colours.
The distinctive new purple kit is now on sale in the club shop and from Monday, November 12, will be available from the club’s Christmas outlet at the Tŷ Pawb arts and community hub in Wrexham town centre.
According to the club, the partnership with Ifor Williams Trailers was a perfect fit because of the iconic trailer firm’s community spirit which matched their own ethos as a club that’s owned and run by the fans.
The company, which has factories in Cynwyd, Corwen, Sandycroft and Deeside Industrial Estate, has a global network of distributors as far afield as New Zealand and Australia.
Russell, who works in Corwen, said: “I’ve been a Wrexham fan since the early 70s when I started going with my Taid and my uncle.
“They were the glory days of Wrexham and I think the first game I went to was against Bournemouth.
“They had some really great players. I remember Dixie McNeil and when Dai Davies arrived at the club. Bobby Shinton, Billy Ashcroft and Graham Whittall were fantastic too.
“My son Gareth also comes now so he’s a third generation supporter of Wrexham.
“There are signs this season that things are starting to improve again and we’re winning matches. We’re not quite the finished article yet but there’s certainly been a good improvement and there’s plenty of hope there.
“Obviously the Holy Grail is getting back into the Football League. I’m keeping my fingers and everything else crossed that we secure promotion this time.
“As a lifelong supporter, being asked to help unveil the new purple kit is a dream come true.
“There are a lot Wrexham supporters who work for the company and who come to the matches. There’s always a lot of banter on a Monday morning – I always look forward to going into work a bit more if Wrexham have won.”
The club’s commercial manager, Geoff Scott, said: “We needed a third kit for the matches where there’s a clash so we looked at options and what we decided upon was a purple kit that we actually wore in Portugal over the summer.
“The fans loved it and we’ve had lots of enquiries since then so in essence the fans have really chosen it themselves. It’s back by popular demand.
“As well as being on sale at the club shop, we’ve got another Christmas outlet opening on the in Tŷ Pawb on November 12. There’s going to be a Christmas grotto there and lots of stalls and lots of things happening in the evening.
“We are extremely grateful to Ifor Williams Trailers for their support. They’re an iconic brand but they’re from North Wales, very highly respected and it’s a great fit really between ourselves and them.”
It was a sentiment echoed by Richard Hughes, the Human Resources Manager Ifor Williams Trailers, is also a Wrexham fan.
He said: “We have a lot of die-hard Wrexham AFC fans working at Ifor Williams Trailers, including season ticket holders and Wrexham Supporters’ Trust members.
“The club has a brilliant track record for youth sport with the boys and girls teams, and also for disabled football, which is another reason we are proud to partner the club again this year.”
