IT'S been a long time coming but Luke Summerfield has already achieved an important milestone in pre-season.

The midfielder played 90 minutes as Wrexham suffered a 3-1 defeat against Stoke City in Wednesday's friendly at The Racecourse.

It was Summerfield's first full game since the Reds lost 2-0 at Fylde on January 19.

The 31-year-old sustained a calf injury in the 1-0 win over Maidenhead the following weekend - Graham Barrow's last game as manager - and he missed more than two months before featuring in the final four games ahead of the play-offs.

But Summerfield limped off with a knee injury in the eliminator defeat against Eastleigh and although he has been involved in previous pre-season matches, it was understandable why he was delighted to play the whole game against Stoke.

"It was 90 minutes which I have not had for a long, long time," said Summerfield. "That is a big positive for me.

"It has been a long time coming. I have been desperate to get back fit for a long time with a change in manager.

"I have worked hard over the summer and I can't thank the physio enough for helping me get there.

"It was a massive bonus for me to play 90 minutes and look forward to the rest of pre-season.

"Pre-season is all about getting the fitness levels and preparation for August."

Wrexham responded well to conceding a fifth minute goal and equalised through in-form Bobby Grant.

Stoke, who made wholesale changes in the second half, sealed victory thanks to Wales international Sam Vokes' brace but Summerfield was delighted Wrexham matched the Championship outfit for long periods.

"It was a great test for us," said Summerfield. "I thought we played really well.

"The boys dug deep against a really good Stoke team.

"They brought two teams and they showed their quality in the end but we are very proud of how we went about it.

"Even though it was a loss, we have got a lot of positives to take from it."

Wrexham played well after conceding an early goal in last week's friendly against Portuguese top-flight side Portimonense SC and Summerfield praised his team-mates for not letting the set-backs bother them.

"We conceded early in those two games but it shows how together we are," said Summerfield.

"Going behind is never going to faze us and that is good to have.

"Our response was great to get back in the game against Stoke; to stay in the game for long periods of time and show how good we were was a massive bonus for us.

"It was always going to be a hard 30 minutes when they bring on the new XI but it is 90 minutes under our belt and we can only get better from it."

Wrexham continue their pre-season programme away at National League North outfit Curzon Ashton tomorrow and Summerfield added: "Whatever team plays we will look to win."