SHAUN PEARSON believes the Wrexham players showed they aren’t going to get sidetracked with the uncertainty surrounding Sam Ricketts’ uncertain future.

Reds’ boss Ricketts was asked by the club board not to attend Saturday’s FA Cup second round tie with Newport County amid mounting speculation that he was about to be named Shrewsbury Town boss.

Wrexham produced a fantastic performance against their League Two visitors, with the game finishing in a goalless draw, and captain Pearson feels he and his team-mates proved they were focussed on the job in hand.

“Once you get out there, you just get on with it,” said Pearson.

“You forget about everything else. When you are out on the pitch you are not thinking about who is stood in the dugout or anything like that.

“I think in one sense it took the pressure off us because everyone else was thinking about the chaos, and maybe put a little bit more pressure on them. I thought we handled it well and just a shame we couldn’t get the win.”

Pearson admits the decision not to allow Ricketts to take charge of the cup tie came out of the blue but he was delighted with the Reds’ response with assistant manager Graham Barrow taking charge.

“The gaffer was there as normal on Friday, took training and everything was planned as normal,” said Pearson.

“As far as we were aware he was still going to take the game. Obviously everybody knew the rumours but we still did everything as normal, the gaffer did everything as normal, there was nothing different with him and prepared exactly right as he always has done.

“It was a bit of a strange one on Saturday morning. I had a phone call off Spencer Harris and then the gaffer rang me after that.

“I heard both sides of the story and then I spoke to Graham, and relaid to the lads what I had been told.

“Obviously what has happened has happened. We will just have to see what happens the next couple of days now.

“All we can do is get on with the job so we are pleased with the way we played, just disappointed that we couldn’t get the win.”

Wrexham, who have struggled for goals lately but are still among the National League leaders, had the better chances but will now head to Newport for next week’s replay.

“We played really well,” said Pearson. “Lots of positives, lots of chances, it was just a shame we couldn’t put one away and get the victory.

“Their goalkeeper made two great saves and fair play to him.

“That has been our story lately, apart from Barrow away the other night when we wasn’t great.

“We were really good against Leyton Orient and Maidstone, we have just not managed to score enough goals basically.

“But if we keep performing like that and keep getting chances, it is going to turn for us, there is no doubt about that.”

With Ricketts departing, National League high-fliers Wrexham are looking for their fourth manager of 2018.

The Reds’s promotion challenge fell away under Andy Davies when Dean Keates left to take charge of Walsall in March but Pearson doesn’t expect the same thing to happen.

“People are worried about the same thing happening as last year,” added Pearson.

“All I would say is it is a different group of players now and we are probably in a better place as a group to handle that.

“Hopefully it has happened early enough for us to adapt and address the situation before it is too late.”

In tonight’s only action in the National League, a win for Harrogate Town at Solihull Moors will put them three points ahead of Wrexham.