Rosie Hughes scores a big own goal over Wrexham comments on US TV interview

Wrexham AFC Women net-buster Rosie Hughes scored a big own goal when she insulted the city which has made her a local celebrity in an American TV interview today.

Hughes, 28, top-scorer for the female Red Dragons for the past three seasons in which she has totalled more than 100 goals, is in the US with the women’s and men’s teams on the Wrex Coast Tour ’24

The women got off to a humbling start yesterday with a 9-0 defeat to SoCal FC.

Yet Hughes was in an ebullient mood when she spoke to a USA TV reporter about the tour.

She gave high praise to Los Angeles, gushing over the ‘amazing looking cars and buildings’ describing them as ‘beautiful’ before saying ‘it’s not like Wrexham’.

Hughes went on to talking about impressive plants on the streets of LA before adding “you wouldn’t see that in Wrexham, they’d get destroyed”

Her comments have caused uproar on social media, with many on X/Twitter saying she has insulted the North Wales city and should leave the club if these are her feelings.

One Wrexham fan commented: “If she focused on not chatting s* maybe she wouldn’t be getting battered 9-0. P* poor by her, get her gone if she’s slagging our town.”

Another said: “Can the documentary (Welcome to Wrexham) stop giving her all the air time now & acting like she’s the team & the Messi of women’s football”

And one supporter brought Wrexham AFC’s wealthy Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhinney into the debate, stating: “I know Wrexham is not perfect but I love it here and it is not as bad as she is painting it. Ryan and Rob are trying to encourage people to visit, this isn’t going to do that. It’s easy to compare LA to Wrexham when she is only seeing the privileged bit.”

Another comment was: “Biting the hand that feeds out is not a good look. Wrexham has been good to Rosie, she should give some of that good back. Disrespectful.”

Hughes was a largely unknown player in Welsh football – although she had played in the former Welsh Premier for Llandudno – before being signed by Wrexham in 2021.

Her goals helped the Red Dragons win the tier 2 Genero Adran North title in 2022-23 and last season she was among the leading scorers in the Adran Premier.

Hughes’ profile has risen through her interviews on the Welcome to Wrexham TV series, which has given the women’s team major publicity despite playing at a level way below the men’s equivalent.

The women’s team are semi-professionals and the only North Wales side in the top flight.

Judging by the reaction to her comments in the interview with American TV, which has been widely spread on social media, she may now attract a different form of attention than she has been used to.