Star man Woodburn nods stoppage-time winner as Giggs’ gamble of resting Bale just pays off
Pacy Liverpool striker got his reward for shining in a tepid friendly - after Real Madrid superstar was wrapped in cotton wool for Friday's Euro qualifier against Slovakia
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RYAN GIGGS wrapped Gareth Bale in cotton wool for Sunday's opening Euro 2020 qualifier with Slovakia and Ben Woodburn's injury-time winner saw his major gamble pay off.
The Real Madrid superstar was left out of Giggs' 18-man squad for this friendly with Trinidad and Tobago.
Giggs’ decision to completely omit fit-again Bale raised eyebrows a section of the Welsh support.
Giggs will point to injury doubts Aaron Ramsey (thigh) and David Brooks (ankle) ahead of the Group E showdown with the Slovaks in Cardiff as to why he left his star man out of this drab friendly.
An expected sell-out 10,326 crowd at Wrexham’s Racecourse Ground - for Wales’ first game in the north of the country for 11 years - may have felt short-changed after the 29-year-old was handed a night off due to the fact Bale had returned to Real action last Saturday and scored as well as playing 90 minutes in the 2-0 La Liga win over Celta Vigo.
And on this evidence Giggs will need his talisman firing if Wales are repeat their qualification for Euro 2016.
But, with time running out, Woodburn chested home from Will Vaulks to give Giggs a much-needed win - only his fourth in ten games as Wales boss.
Giggs has rightly stated he should be judged on the Euro qualifiers but he will be disappointed with large parts of this performance.
Without the likes of Bale and regulars Wayne Hennessey, Ben Davies and Joe Allen, this was a lacklustre display by Wales against Trinidad, ranked a lowly 93rd in the Fifa rankings.
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The display lacked cohesion and ex-Wales captain Kevin Ratcliffe labelled the first-half showing as "like a bunch of players that have been thrown together".
Rotherham’s Vaulks was handed his Wales debut while there were also starts for young duo Ben Woodburn and Tyler Roberts in attack.
As Bale watched on alongside his other rested team-mates in the stands, Woodburn, who burst on the scene in the previous World Cup qualifying campaign with a thumping winner over Austria, was desperate to show he could deliver once again on the international stage.
Woodburn, still only 19, has endured a frustrating time at club level after he was recalled by Liverpool following a miserable loan spell at Sheffield United.
In fact, this was Woodburn’s first appearance since Wales’ humiliating defeat in Albania - four months ago.
Woodburn showed neat touches early on and he and Leeds forward Roberts tested Trinidad goalkeeper Marvin Phillip with headers as Giggs’ inexperienced side searched for an opener.
Wales’ last game at the Racecourse, the oldest existing stadium to stage international football in 1877, was a 3-0 friendly victory over Norway in 2008.
After an uneventful first 45 minutes, it could have been worse in the second half for Wales had Chris Gunter not cleared Aubrey David’s shot off the line after Levi Garcia rounded sub keeper Adam Davies. It was a golden chance.
Leicester’s George Thomas, on loan at Scunthorpe, had a header ruled out for offside.
Giggs’ side should have ended the game with ten men as midfielder Lee Evans was lucky to escape with a yellow card after a nasty challenge on Leston Paul.
But at least there was some cheer for the Welsh faithful when Woodburn scored his second goal for his country deep in added time.
