Wrexham can boast to being the oldest football club in Wales, having been formed in September 1872 and playing their first game a month later. The team was formed after a meeting held by the local cricket team at the Turf Hotel ended with the idea being passed of forming a football team for the following season. By 1876, interest in football had grown, and Wrexham were instrumental in the formation of the Cambrian Football Association, which soon changed its name to the Football Association of Wales. Also, in 1876 Wales played its first international game against Scotland at the Racecourse, the ground on which Wrexham play in a 10,500 capacity stadium to this day.
The badge that Wrexham proudly wear close to their hearts has been around since 1973, after a local rag ran a competition to design a new badge to celebrate the club’s centenary. (PIC 1) Anybody spot the mistake? I must admit I didn’t until I was editing the page, but as I mention on the top of the page the club were formed in 1872, and the newspaper ran its centenary competition in 1973. So the banner under the shield has the club name and formation date as 1873. Over 30 years later and the mistake has not been amended but in the words of the great songsmith Jonathan Logan: “What’s another year”? I very nearly missed it myself, and it could have been pointed out to me by someone at the club, but my pleas for help and sack loads of letters went unheard and unanswered. So, the centenary came and went and undaunted, they not only continued with the date but doubled it up. (PIC 2) They have now, however, unveiled a new badge which is the old badge with a new date. Have they finally at last after nearly 50 years laid Johnny Logan’s ghost to rest and corrected the date? (PIC 3) No, the new date is now 1864, so from taking the date of the club’s formation forward by a year they have now gone back 12 years, and if anyone at the club can tell me why then please do, but I will not expect an answer. The new date makes them the third oldest team in the world! I could not find any record of that date being correct and their website does not give any back story to how they were founded at that time. But why on earth if they could boast of being the third-oldest club in the world did they wait until recently to display it on their badge? Why did they display 1873 for over a 100 years? And why did I find September 1872? Let us hope the club will explain in the fullness of time. The only thing of note that definitely happened in that year, apart from the American Civil War, was that John Wisden published The Cricketer’s Almanack for the year 1864, which went on to become the major annual cricket reference publication, and boy what a read that must be. Ironically it was also at the time when hundreds of cricket clubs were turning from the boring game to the beautiful game. Luckily the badge is easy to work out so I didn’t need the club’s input as it is made up of purely Welsh elements.
To start, the colours of the badge’s echo that of the Welsh flag. (PIC 4) The flag has a white and green horizontal stripe, with a large red dragon in a passant position. The dragon was a symbol of cohorts of the Roman Legion and would have been quite common in parts of Britain, becoming even more familiar than that of the Roman eagle, as the Romans withdrew at the end of the 4th Century. On the club’s badge the white and green have been turned upside down and on the top green section of the shield is the crest of the Prince of Wales. (PIC 5) It is comprised of three silver or white feathers also known as plumes, these are usually described as ostrich feathers. The feathers rise through a gold coronet of alternate crosses and fleur-de-lis, a French lily, and below these, the coronet is studded with rubies and emeralds. The motto “ICH DIEN” is German and translates as, I Serve. The rules of heraldry allow limited variations in the depiction of the badge so it’s okay that the Prince of Wales emblems differ a bit on the Wrexham badge. At the bottom of the shield on the white background are two Welsh red dragons arguing over a football, the ball, of course, alludes to the beautiful game and the dragons are from the Wrexham coat of arms. (PIC 6)
These arms are derived from the arms of the two former Wrexham authorities. The shield has their greenfield, ermine spots and gold crosiers, under a blue lion on gold from the Hanmers of Maelor, and a wave representing the River Dee. The crest has a red mural crown symbolizing both brick-making and Madog ap Meredydd’s castle at Overton. On the crest the Welsh red dragon rests its foot on a black diamond edged with gold, alluding to coal and other mineral wealth. The oak tree stands for the forestry and rural areas. The supporters are Welsh dragons holding a green pennon for agriculture, around its neck one has a gold symbol of Mars for iron founding, and the other has a gold cogwheel for engineering. The motto “LABOR OMNIA VINCIT” translates as, Hard Work Overcomes All Things. The red dragons also give the club its nickname of “The Red Dragons” and due to their red shirts, they have also been referred to as “The Robins”. They are referred to as something completely different by their Welsh rivals Cardiff and Swansea City. It was difficult to unearth the meaning of the name Wrexham but in its simplest form, it means Rex = King and Hamm = a watery meadow, possibly made by a bend in the river. If you would like to discover more about “The Red Dragons” then fire your way to www.wrexhamafc.co.uk
