First Wrexham player speaks out on club's eight-man exodus with seven-word message

The first Wrexham player has spoken out after the club released eight players following the conclusion of the 2023/24 season.

The Red Dragons announced their retained list on Friday morning, with captain Luke Young and defender Ben Tozer among the high-profile departures once their contracts expire next month.

Callum McFadzean, Aaron Hayden and Jordan Tunnicliffe are the other players to not have their contracts renewed after playing a role in the League Two promotion-winning campaign.

Veteran goalkeeper Rob Lainton is also being released, as well as youngsters Owen Cushion and Dan Davies.

Steven Fletcher, meanwhile, has been offered a new contract at the club, as well as long-serving goalkeeper Mark Howard. As it stands, Howard will be one of only two senior goalkeepers on the books at the start of pre-season if he signs a new deal.

The retained list was announced at the same time as Wrexham's squad is celebrating their promotion success in Las Vegas.

And while players will likely have known about their releases before the trip - retained lists are normally finalised quickly at the end of the season - many of the current squad will essentially see it as a farewell to a few team-mates.

And taking to Twitter, midfielder Jordan Davies, who joined the Red Dragons from Brighton as a free agent in 2020, has paid tribute to captain Young after his release was announced.

He wrote: "Nothing short of LEGEND. What a man."

Nothing short of LEGEND. What a man❤️❤️❤️ https://t.co/15HOYovqz0

— Jordan (@jordandavies98) May 3, 2024

Young joined Wrexham on a free transfer from Torquay in the summer of 2018, and quickly became a fan favourite at the Racecourse Ground.

The now 31-year-old scored 12 goals in the 2020/21 season, and played in 38 games last season as Wrexham earned promotion back to the EFL.

This term, he made 25 appearances, but struggled for regular time after suffering an injury following Wrexham's 5-0 defeat at Stockport in September.

He did play 90 minutes in the final two games of the campaign, though, including the final-day 2-1 win over League Two winners Stockport.