The Rock | Rhosymedre, Wrexham, Wales — July 17, 2026
The Sporting JAX Women capped off their preseason trek to the United Kingdom on Thursday, showcasing attacking and defensive prowess in a 5-0 defeat of Wrexham AFC Women.
Thursday’s match came against a club that has quickly ascended to global recognition, largely in part to actors Ryan Reynolds’ and Rob McEllhenney’s takeover of the club and the FX docuseries Welcome to Wrexham. The friendly also displayed a freshly-renovated version of The Rock stadium, which included a brand-new pitch and a fresh, renewed look after the club’s recent purchase of the facility.
Once kickoff arrived, it didn’t take long for Sporting JAX to take control of the match. The scoring started in the ninth minute when Sophia Boman’s corner kick made its way towards Paige Kenton, who headed it home to give her side the lead.
Things continued in the 17th minute when No. 17, Baylee DeSmit, made the most of a cross from Caroline Murray, finding the back of the net to double the lead. The firepower in the final third was far from over, though, when another Boman corner kick led to a Georgia Brown header, with new signing Ginger Fontenot finishing it off to grow the lead to 3-0.
It was an all-around team goal, but it was also the second to result from a Boman corner kick in just the first 20 minutes of the match.
“We had a lot of runs through which is what led to corners,” Boman said. “I think just getting those reps in practice and then coming out here and doing it in the game; great finishes, great hits from Georgia and Paige.”
“I felt like Sophia Boman did a fantastic job of leading the group,” Sporting JAX Head Coach Stacey Balaam said. “We had a lot of players step up and take responsibility in moments.”
The whistle blew as halftime arrived, with Sporting JAX holding a commanding 3-0 advantage. The teams flipped ends of the pitch, but the results were quite the same. A theme in the second half was strong play from Andrea Fernandez and Academy signing Presley Cason, who worked in tandem to give the Wrexham back line all it could handle.
The pressure came to fruition in the 61st minute when Coco Thistle chipped a ball into the box, causing a fumble that Cason was able to retrieve and move it closer to the goal. From there, Fernandez went to work, getting a kick off from nearly ground level to score and grow the lead to four.
Fernandez struck again just 15 minutes later, capitalizing on another hectic situation in the box. Cason sent a shot from close range that was blocked, but was able to get more contact, causing the ball to land near Fernandez, who fired in it to achieve a brace.
Timely defending, impressive goalkeeping from all three of the team’s keepers and a relentless attack all culminated in a strong victory thousands of miles away from home. The performance earned high praise from the team’s leadership, which was spoken to following the match.
“Started off really well; lots of different goal scorers today,” Balaam said. “Felt like we kept the ball really well and moved it around… looked sharp; feels like we’re gaining sharpness every day.”
“Scoring within the first ten is always awesome and they built on that momentum throughout the game,” Sporting JAX team captain Sophie Jones added. “It was a really strong showing, for sure.”
Looking Ahead
This concludes a valuable and exciting trip to the United Kingdom for the squad, as focus will remain on training and the remainder of preseason action. Be on the lookout across Sporting JAX’s social media accounts for more content from the trip in the coming days.
