Exeter City manager Gary Caldwell has called out the supposed favoritism he feels clubs like Wrexham receive over smaller teams, following a resounding loss.

Wrexham, owned by Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, rose to second place in the League One standings after trouncing Exeter 3-0 at the Racecourse on Saturday, with goals from Max Cleworth, Ollie Palmer, and Ollie Rathbone ensuring the club remain undefeated at home this season. But it’s an alleged offside that didn’t go Exeter’s way that had Caldwell simmering, especially since they were losing 2-0 when Caleb Watts’ goal was disallowed.

Post-match, Caldwell told Exeter’s YouTube channel: “We scored a brilliant goal just before half-time which, for some reason, the linesman gave offside. I heard a statement which I’d never heard in my life that the referee didn’t know, so he gave them the decision.

“When you’re here at this stadium, you’re going to need big decisions to go your way, and they didn’t in that first half. It’s too easy in these big stadiums with bigger clubs to say, ‘It’s only Exeter’ and they get away with it.

“That needs to be looked at, it needs to be assessed, and to say that he’s got that wrong. It happens too many times, and I have to say it if I feel hard done by. We were still second best in that first half and have to look at ourselves, but that decision is a big turning point for what the game could have been.”

Meanwhile, Wrexham’s manager Parkinson couldn’t be happier with his squad’s efforts, pushing them past Birmingham City in the rankings—now just four points shy of top dog Wycombe Wanderers. Their rise comes as their promotion hopes got a boost from their rivals’ stunning 3-2 loss at Shrewsbury Town.

Kudos were also given by Parkinson to groundskeeper Paul Chaloner and his team for pulling off the match under a blanket of heavy snow and rain in the days before. “That was a really strong performance from us. Exeter are a difficult team to break down and they’ve only conceded 10 goals this season,” he said.

“I thought we played some great football and got the control we looked for in the game with Matty James and Ollie Rathbone in the middle of the pitch and Elliot Lee changing his position gave us a different dynamic.

“Man of the match was Chals for me. With the rain we’ve had and the snow which was on the pitch – to get it in good condition is an enormous credit to Chals and his team. They did brilliantly and that doesn’t just happen – he’s been working tirelessly to get that right – and we’ve got to thank Chals and his staff today.”