Teenage star Joe Lacy steals the show as Sydney FC defeats Wrexham in friendly

Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac may not have been in attendance but 40,242 punters got a glimpse of a future star, as teenager Joe Lacey stole the show in Sydney FC’s win against Wrexham.

Sydney FC’s Joe Lacey celebrates scoring against Wrexham. Picture: Getty Images

Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac may not have been in attendance on Tuesday night, but 40,242 punters got a glimpse of a future star, as teenager Joe Lacey stole the show in the Sky Blues’ 2-1 over AFC Wrexham.

Lacey, 18, stunned everybody in attendance when he scored the decisive goal after curling a low shot past Wrexham keeper Callum Burton in the 74th minute of play.

“To be fair, I don’t even think I really saw it,” Lacey said of his goal against the Welsh glamour club.

“I just put my hands into the air as soon as I heard the crowd.

“I’ve been at the club a long time and had a lot of my mates on the pitch alongside me.

“I’m very grateful for the opportunity... yeah, I’m just buzzing.”

Wrexham's Elliot Lee is chased by Sydney FC’s Akol Akon. Picture: AFP

Sure, it was a pre-season friendly, but with the visitors competing in the English second tier this upcoming season, and Sydney playing the final half hour with an outfield composed entirely of academy players, the result really felt like a serious boilover.

Oh, and did we mention the Sky Blues’ marquee man, Douglas Costa, didn’t even play?

Initially, things looked to be going to script for visitors, who scored after 18 minutes when Sydney midfielder Corey Hollman helped James McClean’s free kick into the home side’s net.

However, Alexandar Popovic struck a blow for the locals when he buried a Jordan Courtney Perkins header that had initially been parried by Danny Ward just before the break.

Joe Lacey celebrates his goal. Picture: Getty Images

The goal came just moments after Sydney FC was denied what appeared to be a certain penalty after a Hollman shot made contact with Lewis Brunt’s arm in the 18-yard box.

Probably the most surreal moment of the match occurred in the 60th minute, when both teams simultaneously made a combined 19 substitutions (10 by Wrexham and nine by Sydney).

This would prove crucial, as Lacey and his merry band of youngsters out “fairytaled” British football’s fairy tale team.

Rather appropriately, the winning goal was an absolute showstopper, which started deep in Sydney FC territory. Matthew Scarcella got the move started when he made a long pass to teammate Akel Akon. Thinking quickly, Akon squared the ball to Lacey, who struck it perfectly from just outside the box.

Ironically, Lacey has Welsh heritage and has family living in the country.

“Before the game, I didn’t know how much pull they [Wrexham] had in Australia,” he said.

“I knew they had a documentary and I’ve got family in Wales and they’ve told me about it.”

Wrexham will now travel to Wellington to take on the Phoenix on Saturday, while Sydney turns its attention to its Australia Cup opener against Western United on 29 July.