IT might not seem like it but Mel Pejic felt Wrexham’s 6-1 hammering at Crewe Alexandra in the FA Cup was probably their best result of the 1992-93 season!

Struggling Wrexham had only won five of their opening 14 league games when they were thrashed by Division Three rivals Crewe at Gresty Road in a first round tie on November 14, 1992 where Mickey Thomas was sent off on a day to forget.

However, that proved to be the turning point in a campaign that ended on a real high.

Nine wins out of 10 during December and January saw Wrexham fly up the table and suddenly Brian Flynn’s side were genuine promotion contenders.

The Reds did not take their foot off the gas in the final three months and automatic promotion was confirmed in the penultimate match at Northampton.

Pejic, a mainstay of the defence, says the heavy cup defeat against Crewe was the kick-up-the-backside that Wrexham needed.

“The 1992-93 season was a fantastic season,” said Pejic. “We didn’t set the world alight early on and the real turning point was Crewe away in the FA Cup when we got absolutely hammered.

“Crewe were a good team but it was a big kick in the teeth. Everybody reflected on that and we knew we had to do something.

“Flynnie changed the team a little bit, I came back into the team at that point and we just got the balance right.

“We just seemed to blend and gel together, and we just went on an amazing run from that point.”

Wrexham found momentum after beginning December with a six-game winning streak which included an epic 5-4 victory against Chesterfield at The Racecourse in the final game of 1992.

“I remember the game against Chesterfield at Christmas, it was an amazing game,” said Pejic.

“Then we just snowballed into a run that everybody loves to be involved in.

“When you get on these runs, you get that confidence and self belief in each other, and you feel almost like you are not going to lose.

“We had that feeling from just before Christmas going through to the end of the season when we pulled together and had a fantastic run.

“To finish off that season at Northampton and get promotion was amazing. Happy memories for me.”

Wrexham headed to the County Ground on April 27 knowing victory against Northampton would clinch a place in Division Two with a game to spare.

More than 4,000 travelling supporters saw the Reds finish the job off as prolific striker Gary Bennett scored twice in the first half to secure a 2-0 win.

“We took big support over there for an evening game and it was a brilliant night,” said Pejic. “We controlled the game and Benno got a couple of goals which took the pressure off us a little bit and we won it comfortably in the end. Benno worked wonders for us that season.”

Although Bennett finished the season as leading scorer, it was hardly a one-man show.

Striker partner Steve Watkin was also a regular on the scoresheet, Karl Connolly and Jonathan Cross were wing threats, Gareth Owen and Mike Lake pulled the strings in midfield while Pejic and Tony Humes formed a formidable centre-back partnership.

Pejic, who later went on to become Wrexham’s first team physio, felt Flynn had the right blend in a tightly-knit squad.

“We had a small squad,” said Pejic. “Young lads like Jonathan Cross, Gareth Owen and Phil Hardy were coming through and just starting off on their careers.

“Karl Connolly was there and we signed Benno which was a big signing.

“Mike Lake came in during the season and we just gelled together.

“We had a nice mix of youth and lads like me coming to the end of their career.

“It was only a small squad but we dealt with a lot of things and we had our rewards at the end of it which was amazing.”

Wrexham had fallen on hard times in the mid to late 1980s but Flynn began to revive the club’s fortunes slowly and surely, famously knocking league champions Arsenal out of the FA Cup in January 1992 before following it up with promotion.

“It was a great time for the supporters and everybody that stuck by the club through thick and thin,” added Pejic, who arrived at The Racecourse midway through the 1991/92 season having played more than 500 games in a 12-year spell at Hereford United.

One of his main Hereford highlights was ironically against Wrexham when lifting the Welsh Cup as captain of a Bulls team that beat Wrexham 2-1 at Cardiff Arms Park in 1990.

“Life in the lower leagues is not always a bed of roses, added Pejic, who was also Reds physio, again in Cardiff, when Wrexham won the LDV Vans Trophy Final in 2005.

“It can be difficult at times so it is nice to have the good times that go with it.”