All the news stories from December 2019
 |
WYCOMBE 1 COVENTRY 4
(Sunday 29th December 2019)
Wanderers’ woeful League record against Coventry City continued as Matt Godden bagged a hat-trick as the visitors left Adams Park with a 4-1 victory. Wycombe still cling on to top spot in the table but are now just four points clear of 2nd placed Oxford United who have a game I hand. Meanwhile, City climb to 5th spot – six points behind Wycombe as the League One promotion race continues to tighten up.
Wycombe went into the game having lost all previous four Football League meetings with The Sky Blues and Gareth Ainsworth’s side were on the back foot on three minutes when Sam McCallum cut back from the left being curling in a righted footed effort struck from the edge of the box. Adebayo Akinfenwa drew Wycombe level on 14 minutes when he swept the ball into left corner of the net from six yards after neatly controlling Sido Jomabti’s flick on.
However, two minutes laterJomabti conceded a soft penalty when he was caught in possession and Godden converted from the resulting spot-kick. On the stroke of half-time Godden made it 3-1 when he beat the offside trap before clipping the ball past Allsop from the right edge of the six-yard box. Wycombe came close to pulling a goal back in first-half stoppage when Scott Kashket’s first-time shot appeared to strike the left-hand upright. But the match was sealed in favour of Coventry five minutes after the re-start when Godden struck first time from 20 yards with a low shot inside the right-hand post to make it 4-1.
A third successive League defeat for Wycombe came after Gareth Ainsworth made five changes to the side that had lost at Portsmouth three days previous – Giles Phillips, David Wheeler, Matt Bloomfield, Scott Kashket and Adebayo Akinfenwa returning in favour of Darius Charles, Nick Freeman, Paul Smyth, Alex Samuel and Rolando Aarons.
Wycombe host Ipswich Town on New Years Day at Adams Park.
Wycombe: Allsop, Jombati, Stewart, Phillips, Jacobson, Ofoborh, Thompson (sub 62 Freeman), Bloomfield, Wheeler (sub 77 Parker), Kashket (sub 66 Smyth) Akinfenwa – subs not used: Yates, Pattison, Samuel, Mascoll - Att: 7,533 (1,800 away)
 Wycombe 1 Coventry 4 - @GasManCOTN - Twitter summary
|
|
PORTSMOUTH 2 WYCOMBE 0
(Thursday 26th December 2019)
Wanderers suffered a second successive League defeat for the first tie in the 2019/20 - campaign as they went down 2-0 to Portsmouth at Fratton Park. Defeat means that Wanderers’ lead at the top of the division was cut to six points as Ipswich again failed to take advantage after drawing 0-0 at home to Gillingham. The chasing pack continue to bunch-up with the gap from 2nd to 10th, just four points.
A sometimes frenzied game at Pompey saw Gareth Ainsworth’s side more than hold their own for the first hour but eventually succumbed in the 66th minute - Ben Close eventually netting for the home side after Ryan Allsop had moments earlier blocked earlier efforts from Ronan Curtis and Close. A second goal seven minutes later, when Curtis flicked in a low cross from the right proved a step too far for Wycombe to climb back from.
Team news for Wanderers at Fratton Park saw five changes to the starting XI that had lost at Oxford the previous Saturday - Nmandi Offorborh, Rolando Aarons, Paul Smyth, Alex Samuel and Nick Freeman coming in, while Adebayo Akinfenwa (suspended) and Dominic Gape (injured) were left out and Scott Kashket, Matt Bloomfield and David Wheeler dropping to the bench.
Wycombe host Coventry City on 29th December – a team they have a 100% losing record in the Football League (4 games).
Wycombe: Allsop; Jombati, Stewart, Charles Jacobson; Thompson (sub 27 Pattison), Ofoborh; Aarons (sub 67 Wheeler), Samuel, Freeman; Smyth (sub 77 Kashket) – subs not used: Yates, Phillips, Bloomfield, Parker
- Att: 18,419 (749 away)
Portsmouth 2 Wycombe 0 - @GasManCOTN - Twitter summary
|
 |
TAKE-OVER UPDATE
(Tuesday 24th December 2019)
An update on the takeover of Wycombe Wanderers Football Club was given to Trust Members by Chairman Trevor Stroud via email on 24th December 2019. The summary said that Rob Couhig's company had: "Planned to complete the deal on 10th January 2020." Rob Couhig added that: "Mark Palmer will not be involved with his team on a day to day basis, to allow him to pursue other opportunities." The Trust Board also agreed that "due to potential conflicts of interest, the Trust Chairman should not sit on the Football Club Board." David Cook and Trevor Stroud will stay on the FC Board and therefore as a result, Stroud will stand down as Trust Chairman as soon as the deal is completed. The Trust Board held an election the previous week where it was decided that Nigel Kingston will take over as Chairman, with Peter Lerner as his Vice Chair.
Full details via wycombewandererstrust.com
|
 |
GARDINER-SMITH LOANED OUT
(Tuesday 24th December 2019)
It was confirmed on 24th December 2019 that Wanderers midfielder Jacob Gardiner-Smith had been signed by former Wycombe player George Borg at Braintree Town -
joining the National League South side on a three month loan. The 22-year-old joined Wanderers in July 2019 but had been limited to three First Team appearances (all in the Football League Trophy) before agreeing the loan. |
 |
KASHKET CHARGED BY FA
(Tuesday 24th December 2019)
The FA confirmed on 24th December 2019 that Wanderers striker Scott Kashket been charged with misconduct under The FA’s Betting Rules.
It is alleged that he placed 183 bets on football matches between 3 September 2014 and 22 August 2016, contrary to FA Rule E8. Kashket was on the books of Leyton Orient during this period and signed for Wanderers on 31st August 2016. The player has until 31st Decembver 2019 to respond with a fine and expected ban to be announced early in the new year. |
|
CLEAN SHEET RECORD
(Saturday 21st December 2019)
Wanderers reached a record 10 hours of League football without conceding a goal during the match at Oxford United on Saturday (21st December 2019). The final total of 602 clean sheet minutes set a new Club record for Wycombe as a Football League Club (1993-2019). |
|
OXFORD UTD 1 WYCOMBE 0
(Saturday 21st December 2019)
Wanderers conceeded a League goal for the first time in over 10 hours and saw Adebayo Akinfewna red-carded as they went down 1-0 to Oxford United in front of a 10,000 plus gate at the U's Grenoble Road stadium. James Henry scored the only goal of the game on 23 minutes and Wycombe's task was not helped three minutes later when Akinfenwa (already booked for a 20th minute push) was goaded by former Wanderer John Mousinho and shown a second yellow by referee Lee Swabey.
Wycombe's only second League defeat of the season came after Gareth Ainsworth made three changes to the side that had beaten Burton Albion at Adams Park the previous saturday - Dominic Gape, Scott Kashket and Akinfenwa coming in for Nmandi Ofoborh, Rolando Aarons and Alex Samuel. Gape was forced off on 9 minutes with a leg injury.
Despite the defeat, Wanderers remained 7 points clear at the top of the table after previously 2nd placed Ipswich lost away to Portsmouth. Wycombe travel to Fratton Park to take on Pompey on Boxing Day.
Wycombe: Allsop, Jombati, Stewart, Charles, Jacobson, Gape (sub 9 Ofoborh), Thompson, Bloomfield (sub 81 Aarons), Kashket (sub 62 Smyth), Wheeler, Akinfenwa – subs not used: Yates, Phillips, Freeman, Samuel
- Att: 10,123 (1,802 away)
Oxford Utd 1 Wycombe 0 - @GasManCOTN - Twitter summary
|
 |
HAUSE MAKES PREMIER DEBUT
(Monday 16th December 2019)
Former Wycombe Wanderers defender Kortney Hause made his Premier League debut for Aston Villa on Saturday (14th December 2019) - playing the full 90 minutes in the 2-0 defeat at Sheffield United. The 24-year-old
moved to Villa from Wolves in June 2019 for a fee reported in the region of £3m - leaving Wycombe with an expected windfall of around £560,000 from the sell-on agreement when he left Wycombe for Wolves in January 2014.
Kortney Hause - Player Profile
|
|
WYCOMBE 2 BURTON 0
(Saturday 14th December 2019)
Wanderers extended their lead at the top of ‘League One’ to seven points with an efficient 2-0 victory over Burton Albion at Adams Park. The sixth clean sheet was also a Football League record for Wycombe who have now reached 43 points after 20 games and are now guaranteed a top spot in the division on Christmas Day irrespective of how results develop on Saturday 21st December.
Team news had seen Gareth Ainsworth make four changes from the starting XI at Ipswich on Wanderers’ last outing 18 days previous – Sido Jombati, Nmandi Ofoborh, Alex Samuel and Rolando Aarons coming in for Jack Grimmer, Dominic Gape, Adebayo Akinfenwa and Paul Smyth. Grimmer and Gape were both reported to have picked up knocks in training.
Wycombe opened the scoring in the 24th minute when Joe Jacobson’s corner from the left found its way to Anthony Stewart on the far side of the penalty area – Stewart then stroking the ball back across the face of the goal for David Wheeler to sweep home from six yards.
The visitors pressed briefly in the second period but failed to get any serious efforts on goal and it was left for Wanderers to wrap the game up in the final minute of normal time - a sublime midfield pass from Wheeler to Alex Pattison on the right corner of the Burton penalty area seeing the former Middlesbrough trainee’s pass across the goal partially cleared to Matt Bloomfield who struck home from 10 yards to make the final score 2-0 to Wanderers.
It was Bloomfield’s first goal of the season and meant that he continued his record of scoring in all season’s he has been at Adams Park (now standing at 17). He showed his delight by celebrating wildly in front of the Woodlands stand.
Wycombe travel to an in form Oxford United on Saturday 21st December before entering a daunting holiday programme that includes games against Portsmouth, Coventry City and Ipswich Town.
Wycombe: Allsop, Jombati, Jacobson, Stewart, Charles, Thompson (sub 80 Pattison), Ofoborh, Bloomfield, Wheeler, Aarons (sub 66 Kashket), Samuel (sub 65 Akinfenwa) – subs not used: Yates, Phillips, Smyth, Freeman
- Att: 5,448 (186 away)
Wycombe 2 Burton 0 - @GasManCOTN - Twitter summary
|
Previous month |||
Latest news from chairboys.co.uk
|
|
LATEST NEWS
All there is to say and know about Wycombe Wanderers on the Internet