By Tom Bevan via SWNS
Lowly football club Wroxham FC have appealed to Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds for help – after fearing they missed out on Wrexham FC funding ‘by one letter’.
The Non-league side say having an ‘O’ instead of ‘E’ was all that cost them celebrity owners Reynolds and Rob McElhenney – who went on to invest in Wrexham FC.
The club is now hoping a new documentary about their journey will come to the attention of the stars – with calls for a friendly match that has already been dubbed the ‘vowel derby.’
Their trailer to the 3-part documentary has now been released and led to hundreds of calls for Reynolds to respond – and agree to meeting for the clash of the Wr*xhams.
The fortunes of Wroxham FC, who currently sit rock bottom of the Isthmian North League, could not be further from those of Wrexham FC, who currently rank five divisions above them.
Club Chairman, James Blower, revealed the club has had “hundreds” of people confuse the two clubs over the past couple of years as the fortunes of Wrexham skyrocketed.
Since the club released the trailer to the series, aptly named, Welcome to Wroxham – it has already racked up 300k views on social media and garnered thousands comments from football fans, including many from Wrexham.
The trailer features wholesome characters from the Norfolk-based football club, including tireless cigar smoking 78 year-old head groundsman, Barry Letten, and club chairman, James Blowers.
Blowers said: “We’ve watched from the subs bench as Wrexham FC has soared up the leagues and achieved global fame thanks to their celebrity owners.
“There’s plenty of people around this great little club that think but for ONE letter, it could have been us.
“With investment from our new club sponsor, Riot Labs, we’ve finally been able to make the documentary that tells our side of the story, and with a bit of luck, put the club on the map to maybe secure our own celebrity investment.
“Our dream is for Ryan and Rob to spot our own special story, and maybe set up a pre-season grudge match!”
Clips were shared of the trailer across X, formerly known as Twitter, and shared to various football meme pages, igniting discussion and some friendly rivalry between fans sharing their confusion over the one vowel separating the two teams.
One user aimed to settle the difference and unite the two clubs and wrote: “
“What’s 1 vowel and 250 miles between friends? Up the Wr_xhams!”
Another quipped: “Ryan or Rob must have put you up to this? ð It’s got to be for some advert or campaign? 𤣔
The club said it’s a story it has wanted to tell for over three years, and has finally made possible thanks to new club sponsor, quit smoking missionaries, Riot Labs, who have invested in the club as part of a drive to help non-league football fans quit smoking.
As part of the deal with Riot Labs, the club has also declared their “iconic” 50-person Kenny Cooke stand behind the goal “smokefree” for the rest of the season to encourage fans to kick the habit into touch.
One of the stars of the documentary is 78 year-old cigar smoking Head Groundsman, Barry Letten, who has tended to the grounds at the club as a volunteer for the past two decades.
During the documentary, Letten goes on his own quit smoking journey with the help of Riot Labs, hoping to bin the cigars for good.
He said: “I walked into the clubhouse this morning and a couple of regulars asked for a photo with me. Apparently I’m a social media sensation now, whatever that means!
“I’m more pitchfork and wheelbarrow than TikTok star but this must be what Ryan Reynolds feels like when he turns up at Wrexham.
“Wroxham FC means the world to me, I’m here five days a week come rain or shine looking after the pitch, cleaning the toilets, sweeping the changing room, whatever is needed.
“It’s a community club that deserves its time in the limelight, and to be what everyone is calling “the star of the show” means an awful lot. I love it.”
Rachel Cole has been involved with Wroxham FC for over 30 years, and her father was once the club physio. Now she runs the catering on matchdays, where the average crowd is around 150 fans compared to the 13,000 strong at a Wrexham FC match.
Speaking on her star role in the documentary, she said: “My dad was a massive part of this football club, and I’ve been involved in all sorts of roles for decades. Despite the small crowd numbers, there’s nothing like the buzz of a matchday here.
“I must admit, I was rather nervous to feature in the documentary but all the reaction has been really positive and it’s exciting to know people are taking an interest in the club. It’s our time to shine.”
As part of the deal with new sponsor, Riot Labs, the clubs iconic 50-person Kenny Cooke Stand behind the goal will be declared smokefree for the rest of the season.
Ben Johnson, Riot Labs CEO, added: “It’s simply a great story that had to be told.
“We’re always looking for new ways to help people quit smoking, and non-league football is a great audience.
“To be able to support the club and give them the platform and investment to share their unique story is an honour and the reaction has been brilliant – we hope it helps them attract future sponsors and maybe even Hollywood owners of their own.”
