ALL successful teams win games when they are not at their best and Wrexham demonstrated this quality against Mansfield Town at The Racecourse on Saturday.

Phil Parkinson's side beat Mansfield Town 1-0 in League One's top of the table clash courtesy of in-form wing-back Ryan Barnett's superb sixth minute strike.

Even before Barnett scored what turned out to be the only goal, passes went astray and the Reds were lucky not to go behind themselves.

Mansfield controlled large parts of the first half, defending well and proving to be a threat on the break as the Stags, who won automatic promotion from League Two last season alongside Wrexham and Stockport County, were a threat when they attacked.

They never took their chances but there were more to come in the second half for the visitors who showed how good a side they are.

Although not firing on all cylinders, Wrexham were better after the break and had some opportunities themselves to get a second goal in a bid to put the game to bed.

The Reds got into some wonderful positions but just couldn't make the most of the openings they created as the game hung in the balance.

Thankfully, the equaliser never came at the other end but Mansfield will feel hard done by that they never left North Wales with at a point.

It was a hard-fought win for Wrexham who dug in and showed a lot of grit and determination.

You can't play like world-beaters every match but the players showed they are willing to roll up their sleeves and produce a battling display to grind out a win which is all that matters at the end of the day.

It was important to bounce back from the 1-0 FA Cup first round defeat to League Two Harrogate Town the previous weekend, while the 2-2 draw in the last league game at Charlton Athletic, who equalised in the seventh minute of injury time from a hotly contested penalty, was still lingering.

Keeping an eighth clean sheets in 14 league games - an impressive statistic after making the step up to a higher level - ensured Wrexham got back to winning ways and stayed third in the table, four points behind leaders Wycombe Wanderers.

It wasn't easy going but Parkinson praised his back-to-back promotion winners for ensuring they came out on top and seal a 94th victory in 150 league games since he took charge in July 2021, with the Reds picking up 33 draws and losing only 23 times in that spell.

"It was a hard-fought game. Mansfield have got a good team, they have done well on their travels and we had to work exceptionally hard to get the win," said the Reds' boss.

“Were we at our best? No. We gave the ball away cheaply at times.

"Sometimes you have got to dig deep and work together as a team to get the result.

“In the second half we had two of the best chances to go and extend the lead to give the scoreline a more comfortable look but we had to stand strong.

"People sometimes remember the 3-0 or 4-0 games but we have had games like that where we have got to make sure that we roll up our sleeves and realise if we are not at our fluid best in terms our football, we have to stand strong and everyone does their jobs out of possession, and in general we did that."