It’s fair to say that Abbie Iddenden’s debut season with Wrexham has been nothing short of a success.
The forward made the move to the Genero Adran Premier side from Stoke City, where she was struggling for opportunities, and the chance to join Wrexham was something she had to accept.
“I was at Stoke City before I came here, and I wasn’t really enjoying my football as much as I previously had done.
2025 Bute Energy Welsh Cup Final
“I wanted to have a fresh start, so I didn’t really have any expectations and didn’t put any pressure on myself, and that’s been one of the main things that’s helped me enjoy my football this season. There’s a great group of girls here and the staff are brilliant too.
“Wrexham is a huge club to begin with, but the growth within the women’s section and their ambitions alongside that to push further in the Adran Premier and Champions League was a real incentive for me. I’ve not regretted anything since I’ve joined the club and I’m really happy here.”
It truly has been a tale of two seasons in one for Wrexham. A poor start to Phase One had them sitting sixth in the Genero Adran Premier and looking unlikely to secure a place in the top four.
Yet since the turn of the year, they’ve staged an impressive turnaround, got into the top four in the final game of Phase One, and Iddenden believes that achievement has pushed them even further towards the end of this campaign.
“At the start of the season, it took a little while for us new players to get used to the system and the style of play of each player. We put ourselves in a position at the end of Phase One where we could make it into the top four, and that gave us a real push for those final couple of games. To then finish top four, it made us want to work even harder in Phase Two.”
Now, after an impressive turnaround, Wrexham are one game away from lifting the Bute Energy Welsh Cup for the first time.
The only side standing in their way are the holders Cardiff City. Iddenden is fully aware of how difficult the task in front of them is, but says after last year’s final, the squad are fully focused on getting revenge on the Bluebirds.
“We know it’s going to be a hard game against Cardiff City, there’s no doubt about that. Especially with this game happening down south they’ll have a lot more support than us. But we know what we can do, we know what we need to work on, and we’ve had a nice few weeks before the final to really knuckle down and make that final push.
“The girls have basically told us new players that it was a matter of so close but yet so far in last year’s final. From the sounds of it, we were the better team that day but just fell at the final hurdle. If we can turn it around this year and prove ourselves, it would be massive.”
The biggest difference heading into this final compared to last year’s showpiece is Wrexham’s record against the Bluebirds.
Iddenden and her team picked up two victories over City in Phase Two, their first wins ever over the league champions, and it’s boosted confidence no end in and around the squad.
“Throughout Phase One the results we had weren’t great, and there were times when people questioned us, and we probably questioned ourselves at times. Things clicked in Phase Two, and picking up two wins against them is huge for us. It’s put us in great stead for the final and hopefully having that advantage will give us the edge.”
It has been a memorable first campaign in red for Iddenden, but a win on Sunday would cap it off in style.
“Winning the Welsh Cup would be huge. At the start of the season everyone has a goal of winning silverware. Cardiff have already done that this season and they’ve got their sights on getting some more. For us, it would top off a very up and down season, but it would be something we’re hugely proud of.”
