Wrexham moved into the FA Cup fifth round for the first time since 1996-97 after a 1-0 win over Ipswich Town at SToK Cae Ras, with Josh Windass deciding a tight contest between two Championship play-off hopefuls and extending the club’s long connection with the competition in a season where league form is also keeping Phil Parkinson’s team firmly in promotion contention.
Windass struck the only goal in a tense tie that saw Wrexham restrict Ipswich to very few clear chances, and the visitors did not register a single effort on target in what was already their 33rd match of the 2025-26 campaign, leaving Kieran McKenna frustrated as Ipswich’s FA Cup campaign ended against opponents from the same division.
Wrexham have been building a modern FA Cup story in recent seasons, having reached the fourth round in 2022-23 while still a National League side, when they beat Coventry City before losing to Sheffield United, then exiting again at the same stage the following year, so this latest victory finally pushed the club one step further than those recent near misses.
The win over Ipswich took Wrexham into the fifth round for the first time in three decades, adding another chapter to the club’s record in the competition, and Parkinson reminded the squad that Wrexham’s history in the tournament matters, asking them to understand the chance in front of them and match the achievements of previous generations.
Parkinson explained that the staff had spoken repeatedly about the Cup’s importance to Wrexham’s identity, saying the squad needed to seize the opportunity to write their own story, with the manager also stressing that the players should enjoy these occasions and not treat the extra fixtures as a burden while they compete on two fronts. “can we create our own bit of history by making it to the fifth round for the first time in thirty years?”
The defeat continued a difficult FA Cup pattern for Ipswich, who have now gone out in 11 of their last 13 fourth-round ties, and the statistics become even starker when considering opponent strength, with Ipswich eliminated in 16 of their last 19 FA Cup matches when facing a side from the same division or a higher league.
McKenna reflected on a match where Ipswich made positive starts in both halves but could not find a breakthrough, acknowledging that the team pushed hard after falling behind yet still created too little to trouble Wrexham’s defence, while also highlighting that many within the squad were experiencing SToK Cae Ras for the first time. “I thought we started both halves well, but we weren’t able to get the goal, McKenna said. In the second half, we tried everything, and we really pushed to get back in the game, but we just couldn’t get back into the game. We’re disappointed tonight, disappointed for the supporters that we couldn’t go through, but we’ll use the lessons from tonight, and it’ll stand us in the weeks ahead. It’s good to come here, and it was the first time here for a lot of people, and obviously we’re here again next Saturday. We learned a bit about here and learned about their team, so we’ve got to use those lessons for next week.
While Ipswich considered the lessons from another Cup exit, Wrexham looked ahead to a demanding schedule, as Parkinson’s side sit sixth in the Championship in their first second-tier campaign since 1981-82 and now prepare for a league trip to Bristol City on February 17, with the manager determined to attack both competitions with the same level of intensity.
Wrexham’s narrow win therefore shaped the short-term plans of both clubs, giving Parkinson’s squad another FA Cup tie and extra belief to take into the league, while Ipswich looked to respond in Championship action after a night where attacking output fell short, with the teams also set to meet again at SToK Cae Ras the following Saturday.