Canterbury coach Cameron Ciraldo drops into Wrexham training for a chat with Red Dragons boss Phil Parkinson

Canterbury coach Cameron Ciraldo and Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson exchanged ideas at a Red Dragons training session on Monday.

Codes collided in Sydney on Monday, and the outcome was nothing but positive as Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson and Canterbury coach Cameron Ciraldo picked each other’s brains about the importance of “mentality” and “culture” at a football club.

Ciraldo has been at the forefront of a Bulldogs revival since his appointment in 2023, with the club this year a genuine chance of winning its first NRL premiership since 2004.

Wrexham has enjoyed a meteoric rise under the tutelage of Parkinson, with the Welsh club having secured three successive promotions to now being an English Championship outfit that will this season vie for a Premier League berth.

Seeking any extra edge that he can add to the Bulldogs, Ciraldo was a visitor at Wrexham’s training session ahead of the Red Dragons’ battle with Sydney FC at Allianz Stadium on Tuesday night.

Phil Parkinson has led Wrexham to three successive promotions. Picture: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

“It’s fantastic that he’s come down here (to training) and he seems a top guy, and it looks like they’re having a good season and getting in those playoffs,” Parkinson said.

“It was really interesting to speak to Cam about how he approaches and has created his team, (and) coaching his team.

“There are a lot of similarities in terms of mentality and team building, and getting the squad right and the culture right. So much is transferable between the two sports.

“We want a team that’s going to work for each other. I’ve never been a manager who has a team where you can carry a passenger who’s not going to run the yards for the rest of the group.

“In sport, if you get one player who’s not buying into the group, then it can detract, definitely.”

Parkinson – whose club has been owned by Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney since 2021 and is the subject of sports documentary television series Welcome to Wrexham – also spent an extended period with Sydney FC coach Ufuk Talay on a boat trip on Sunday.

Ready for battle on Tuesday night are (from left) Sydney FC’s Ufuk Talay and Alexandar Popovic, and Wrexham’s Matty James and Phil Parkinson. Picture: Damian Shaw

“He’s a very nice guy, a very humble guy, and it was good to see that as coaches, we go through the same things,” Talay said of Parkinson.

“The most important part is winning the games on the field. That give them that leverage to move.”

A crowd of more than 35,000 is expected at the game, which is the second of Wrexham’s pre-season tour of Australia and New Zealand, with the Red Dragons having beaten Melbourne Victory 3-0 at Marvel Stadium last Friday night.

“It’s great for the game in Australia. It’s great for the average person that doesn’t even watch football to come out and see the spectacle, then actually get hooked, and then buy a season ticket and come to watch the A-League,” Talay said.

“To bring these type of teams into the country is something very special.”