Joe Sbarra starred on an opening day classic at the SportNation.bet Stadium, as Moors and Wrexham shared the spoils in a 2-2 draw.
The midfielder opened the scoring with a sensational left-footed strike, before thumping home a 94th minute equaliser to earn the point.
And it was no less than Moors deserved, as Neal Ardley’s side dominated the majority of proceedings and battled right up until the final whistle.
Team News
After completing a loan deal ahead of kick-off, goalkeeper Marcus Dewhurst was given his Moors debut with Ryan Boot (knee) not quite ready for action.
Summer signings Ryan Barnett, Harry Boyes, Andrew Dallas, Matt Preston and Danny Newton all started as Ardley opted for a wing-back formation with Dallas and Newton leading the line.
The Match
The Moors almost got off to the perfect start as Barnett, playing at right-wing back, picked up the ball and cut inside onto his left. Christian Dibble in the Wrexham goal allowed it to slip through his hands, but was relieved to see his central defender race to clear from the goal line.
It was all Moors in the opening exchanges and the home side found the goal they thoroughly deserved.
After already having a couple of sightings, Sbarra fancied another. He collected the ball around 20-yards out on the edge of the D and let fly a fizzing strike that nestled into the top left corner, leaving Dibble with no chance.
Despite limiting the visitors to little in front of goal, the game turned on its head when Dewhurst brought down Paul Mullin in the area following slight hesitation with Preston.
The striker stepped up and blasted his penalty straight down the middle.
Then, out of nowhere, Phil Parkinson’s side took the lead. Midfielder David Jones struck an absolute rocket with his left boot that left Dewhurst stranded.
Moors looked for a reply before the break and came close on a couple of occasions. Kyle Storer dragged an effort wide, before Newton stung the palms of Dibble at his near post.
Half-time: Solihull Moors 1-2 Wrexham
Callum Maycock covered plenty of yards in midfield for Moors and he was able to set-up Barnett to cross from the right.
Waiting in the middle was Newton, but he was unable to keep his header down as it sailed over the top.
There was little goalmouth action in the second half, but the Moors kept plugging away and were controlling plenty of the ball.
Ardley rolled the dice by bringing Kyle Hudlin and Justin Donawa on from the bench, with the former forcing Dibble into a low save with a shot that lacked power.
However, the home side’s persistence paid off and they found the leveller four minutes into seven minutes of injury time.
A Boyes corner caused chaos in the Wrexham area and the ball dropped to Sbarra who lashed home a bullet strike into the back of the net to secure an opening day point.
Full-time: Solihull Moors 2-2 Wrexham
Solihull Moors: Dewhurst (GK), Williams, Storer ©, Howe, Sbarra, Maycock, Barnett (Hudlin 72), Boyes, Dallas (Donawa 86), Preston, Newton.
Subs not used: Cranston, McNally, Clayton.
Man of the Match: Joe Sbarra
Attendance: 2,196
Image: Richard King
