See also

>> SLIDESHOW: Look back - Wrexham v Rotherham 1978 game
>> Les Cartwright remembers Wrexham's 1978 victory
>> Wrexham's Graham Whittle will be cheering on the Reds

"I wished I'd have been able to manage Wrexham in the old First Division - and I would have done had we kept the 78 side together," said Wrexham legend Griffiths, who is now honorary president of the club he served for most of his professional career.

Now retired after years running the newsagents in Gresford, Griffiths is only too happy to turn back the clock and relive the days when he, and a wonderful Wrexham side, were making back page and front-page headlines.

"They were wonderful times and it's always nice to look back. I'll never get tired of doing that.

"Wrexham have always been regarded as a side that likes to pass and play attractive football.

"We'd missed out the season before but what a lot of people don't remember is that life wasn't a bed of roses early on. I think we only had around four and a half thousand in for the first home game.

"It wasn't until Christmas we managed to get five figure crowds in and then we were attracting fans from everywhere. Even Bill Shankly was a regular at The Racecourse.

"He loved attacking football, he'd left Liverpool and said he enjoyed watching us play.

"The players had great belief in themselves and I had great belief in them. We were an attacking side. The defense took care of itself.

"But what a team we were going forward - Graham Whittle, Bobby Shinton, Mickey Thomas and of course, Dixie McNeil.

"I've watched Wrexham since and I don't think I've seen one player who would have got into that side of 78."

Remarkably Wrexham only used 15 players on a regular basis last season.

Two of them - McNeil and Dai Davies - arrived in September and Griffiths' only two signings provided the catalyst for their promotion campaign.

"Dixie had experience and he scored goals," added Griffiths. "If he'd have been in our side the season before, we'd have gone up. No doubt about it.

"I'd been on to John Sillett, who was manager at Hereford at the time, but they wanted £100,000.

"I didn't want to pay that much and bided my time. I knew there were other clubs interested and we knew that Hereford were struggling financially. That's when we offered £60,000 and we got him.

"And I can't speak too highly of Dixie. He wasn't just a great goalscorer, he was a great team-player.

"Defenders knew they'd been in a game when Dixie was around. He didn't just put the ball in the net, he put himself about and was one of the main reasons why we were so successful."

Griffiths also heaped praise on the rest of his side, including the Welsh international goalkeeper he paid £10,000 for.

"Dai was a great organiser and that's what you want in a keeper," added Griffiths.

"Dai used all his experience and his distribution from the back was excellent. He hardly ever kicked the ball out of his hands."
Davies - or Dai The Drop as he was affectionately known -would use full backs, Mickey Evans and Alan Dwyer, as his outlets.

"Mickey Evans was very under-rated. He had gone through a difficult time a couple of seasons before but came through it in our promotion season. If you wanted to ark someone out of the game then Mickey was your man.

"On the left hand side, Alan Dwyer, was a much better player than he thought he was. He was superb going forward but was a really quiet lad who just got the job done.

"Alan Hill also played his fair share of games that season and was a really steady player. He was reliable - a player you could put anywhere in the side knowing you'd always get a decent performance in return.

"John Roberts was a hard man and he had a hard job coming in to replace Eddie May. But John had all the experience from his Arsenal and Birmingham days and he was a good stopper and he could also play a bit too.

"Gareth Davies alongside John was another player who was far better than he thought he was. He didn't have the pace but didn't need it being such a good reader of the game.

"He was in the Bobby Moore ilk and was a great captain that season."

From the stoppers to the creators and who best to kick off with than Bobby Shinton.

"He was a wonderful player - and he knew it!" beamed Griffiths. "One of the best players ever to play for Wrexham, Shinner would have been a top, top player but just lacked pace. But the things he could do with a football, you just couldn't coach.

"Mel Sutton helped Shinner's game so much. He was under-rated too and what a fit lad he was. He would breeze pre-season training and would be up and down all day long on the pitch.

"Mickey Thomas was a very talented player and it came as no surprise to see Manchester United sign him. Mickey never stopped running.

"He was like a little terrier on the pitch even if he was a bit nervous off it. But he benefited no end from good senior pros like Mel, Dixie, Dai and John Roberts and Eddie May and Dave Gaskell before that.

"Les Cartwright was a smooth runner who gave us great balance down the left. A great crosser of the ball, Les was a great addition and well worth the £40,000 we spent on him from Coventry.

"One player who definitely should have played at the highest level was Graham Whittle. He was a brilliant player who could score goals from anywhere. He had such a short backlift but he couldn't half hit a ball.

"Nosher played just behind Dixie and had a great knack of finishing things off in the box."

Wrexham's final three squad players also made major contributions, including the late John Lyons, who scored a goal every other game, including an equaliser against Liverpool in the quarter-finals of the League Cup.

"It was very, very sad what happened to John," added Griffiths. "He was a very good finisher - someone you could always rely on when Dixie was out injured.

"Wayne Cegielski was also a good dependable defender while you always knew that Eddie Niedzwiecki was going on to better things.

"I remember John Neal having the choice of Eddie and Neville Southall and he went for Eddie.

"My belief in him was shown after he'd played in the FA Cup quarter final defeat by Arsenal. We went to Swindon the following Tuesday and he had a blinder!"

Griffiths described his Wrexham worldbeaters as 'great characters who looked after one another.' But they still needed a leader and Griffiths - or The Prince of Wales' as he was known by Reds fans - did just that.

Other players used by Griffiths that season, including himself, were Billy Ashcroft.

King Billy scored Wrexham's first goal of the season in a 2-1 defeat at Shrewsbury. Keeper Brian Lloyd also made his only appearance before moving on.

Stuart Lee, Steve Kenworthy, Peter Williams and Steve Buxton also played cameo parts.