Magpies’ character praised by beaming boss Devonshire
Alan Devonshire could barely hide his delight after Maidenhead United tore up the Wrexham script to earn a hard-fought 2-2 draw at York Road.
On Saturday, the Magpies forced a twist in the Welsh outfit’s Hollywood tale, denying them a win and the chance to go further clear atop the National League table.
Reece Smith found the back of the net with a sublime finish to cancel out Paul Mullin’s first half header before Shawn McCoulsky replied in dramatic fashion to the forward’s goal in the second half.
Not long after the full-time whistle, Devonshire was found in Stripes with a smile on his face, a drink on the way, and surrounded by jubilant Magpies fans offering the level of praise that could even leave Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney envious.
“I’m just so pleased,” he said to the Advertiser. “The boys have hit a rich vein of form and hopefully it will continue. This result has lifted us to 43 points and we’re already looking to get another good result on Tuesday.
“We tweaked a few things at half-time. We wanted certain boys on the ball more and that helped us dominate the second half.
“I am pleased with the character we showed when we went 2-1 down. We kept going and the changes really paid off today.”
It’s rare to hear Devonshire praise one Magpies player in particular after a positive result, with the boss keen to commend the whole team and their efforts.
Yet, Smith’s display commanded special attention.
“Reece was superb,” he said. “The kid has got something and we’ve known that for a while, since he was 17-years-old. He’s growing with us, getting better game after game, and he’s levelheaded too. He’s got a chance to go far.
“He’s played so many games in this league already, I think he’s played over 50 now which is so good for a kid of 20-years-old. I expect him to get even better next year as well.
“I do see little similarities with him and myself. All I’m saying is the kid has got a chance.”
This was another useful point in an improving season for Devonshire's side. They're now 11 points clear of the bottom four and look more likely to push for a top half finish rather than worry about what's going on beneath them.
With just 11 matches left to play it's unlikely they aspire for too much more than that, however, Devonshire has moulded and coached a team that is now capable of competing with the very best in the division and that should never be taken for granted.