Wrexham 2-1 Welling

The newly-promoted Wings started well and Lee Clarke came agonisingly close to opening the scoring when a loose ball on the edge of the box fell to the skipper.

With his low drive heading for the top corner, his shot was expertly tipped over the bar by Joslain Mayebi.

It was Wrexham who opened the scoring in the 17th minute when a corner by Steve Tommassen was half cleared to Kevin Thornton.

Thornton played a pass to the on rushing Joe Clarke, who fired into the roof of the net past visiting keeper Lee Butcher.

Wrexham nearly added a second but Butcher produced a smart save from Bradley Reid and then he was alert to rush out of his goal to thwart Andy Bishop.

Welling continued to play the ball around well and, geed up constantly by captain Lee Clarke, almost equalised when Kurtis Guthrie broke free from Jay Clarke and cut into the area, forcing Mayebi to produce a smart save at his near post.

The Wings did find a leveller though two minutes before the break.

Jake Gallagher swept a first-time cross into Joe Healy, who rose high and arched a looping header which beat a fully stretched Mayebi to find the corner of the net, the goal sending the large travelling contingent wild.

Wrexham upped their tempo in the second half, maybe with a flea in the ear from their manager at the interval.

They had a goal disallowed just two minutes after the restart, Joe Clarke’s effort being ruled offside.

Chances were few and far between in the second period as the game became a cagey affair, although Wrexham pushed the Wings back for long periods.

The home side came close to restoring their advantage when Bishop crashed a header from a Thornton corner against the crossbar.

Ross Lafayette had a chance at the other end but shot tamely at Mayebi.

The winning goal arrived in the 83rd minute, as Wrexham’s pressure finally paid off.

Substitute Rob Ogelby had only been on the pitch for a minute but created some space for himself before crashing a low drive under the legs of Doug Berqvist and into the corner of the net, giving Butcher no chance.

It was a cruel blow for Welling, although they almost grabbed another equaliser as Lee Clarke’s last-gasp shot was heading in before Stephen Wright’s last-ditch block.

Despite the result, there were a lot of positives for player-boss Jamie Day to take into Wednesday’s home game against Cambridge.

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Welling: Butcher, Fazakerley, Franks, Bergqvist, Hudson, Gallagher, Dyer, L Clarke, Healy (Jack Obersteller 79), Gutherie (Pires 67), Lafayette. Subs not used: Turner, Hughes Mason, Joe Obersteller. Att: 4,011.