Ben Foster has saluted Wrexham’s Hollywood owners after being rewarded with a Rob McElhenney kiss for his penalty-saving heroics.
The ex-England goalkeeper, in the fourth game of his second spell with the Welsh club, was the hero as they beat Notts County 3-2 on Easter Monday to strike a potentially decisive blow in the National League title race.
Foster, 40, saved Cedwyn Scott’s stoppage-time spot-kick, earning a smacker from McElhenney while fellow Wrexham co-owner Ryan Reynolds complimented him on his looks.
He said: “Rob kissed me fully on the lips and Ryan called me a double handsome b*****d. I’ll take that.
“They’re so happy. If you could order an absolute top-of-the-class owner, you would just package them up because they’re as good as it gets.
“It means so much to them, they were buzzing at the end, they care so much.
“This is non-league but they’re doing it like it’s Premier League standard — the way they travel, prepare, training sessions, the food, the recovery.
“It’s ridiculous how they run it, so fair play to them. They deserve all they get.”
Wrexham need seven points from their final four games to clinch the title and end a 15-year absence from the Football League after establishing a three-point lead over the Magpies.
Foster, who played for Wrexham as a 21-year-old on loan from Stoke in 2005, was in the Premier League at Watford last season.
But he was retired for nine months before answering an SOS after regular keeper Rob Lainton was ruled out for the rest of the campaign.
Foster added: “I only came back because it’s Wrexham, a club I owe a lot to. If it was anybody else it wouldn’t have been a question.
“I had so many offers earlier in the season. Nothing ever really fitted me but this stuck out like a sore thumb.
“Who would have thought a Welsh team would have meant so much to me? It’s mad.
“But this is where my football journey really began, playing 20-odd games.
“I promise it’s about playing good football. I’m competitive and I want to win.”