2019/20 Prediction League; Game 9 v Wycombe (away)

Div3North · 14-09-2019, 22:25

Wycombe Wanderers

V

Accrington Stanley

2019/20 Prediction League; Game 9 v You Fat Bastard Wanderers

This week’s starter for ten, then; managerially speaking, who links Gareth Ainsworth to Sarfend? And how? (PS – clue; it’s not how ....well, it’s not Eddie Howe .................)

And am I the only person who sometimes has an overwhelming urge to jumble up all the Premier/EFL club names – a bit like they’ve done with the names of all the grounds? When I was a lad I could tell you the home ground of every team in the League ....... I had the radio on in the car today when talksport were going round the grounds, and I sat there thinking “bet365 Stadium”? “Falmer Stadium”? KCOM Stadium”? “Moor Lane”?

So – as a kind of Fans’ Revenge” – I thought it’d be fun to make them play as Arsenal Argyle, or Newcastle Villa, or West Ham Rovers ............. they could draw lots on 1st July every season to see who plays as what .............. Wigan Wanderers .......... Colchester County...................Manchester United .................. Oh, is there? ............... And if I ever owned a football team, given that we already have Wolverhampton Wanderers and Wycombe Wanderers, I’d call the team Willy Wonka Wanderers ............... let’s hear the Man off the BBC deal with THAT at 5.00 on a Saturday! “Willy Wonka Wanderers One, Wycombe Wanderers didn’t” .....................

The Chairboys first hit the Big Time in 1993, winning the Bananarama (not that it was that then) and making it into the League; so well did they ‘make it’ that they won the Third Division Playoffs in the 93/94 season (beating PNE 4-2 in the Final) and went up for a second successive season; they stayed up by the elastic in their knickers a couple of times, but GreasyPoled in 2003/04, last in Division Two on 37 points (which relegated them to Division Three, which was promptly re-named League Two – making them the only side I can find who were relegated from Division Two to League Two). They didn’t up-pole until 2008/09, doing Bury on GD by one goal (+21 plays +20, although Bury scored 9 more than they did) for the third automatic spot, went down again the next year, went up again in 2010/11, this time getting the third automatic place ahead of the Shrews by one point ............ in 2013/14 they avoided a Return to the Bananarama on the last day - winning 3-0 at Torquay while Brizzle lost 1-0 to Mansfield – and thus snatching 22nd spot from Brizzle on GD (the records were identical, except that WW had scored 3 more goals than Brizzle). They went up for the last and current time in 2017/18 (which was the year that all the best teams went up.............)

They finished last season in 17th, with a record of W14 D11 L21 GF55 GA67 for 53 points ............ of their 14 wins only four were away, but one of them was at the Wham, when a 91st minute goal gave them a 2-1 win (our goal by Sean McHowMuchHaveWeMissedYou?), although we got sweet revenge during their run of one draw and nine losses in ten games – winning 3-1 at theirs (2 pens from Billy Whizz and a goal from Paul Smyth – who’s currently on loan for the season at WW, for whom he’s scored just the once, the same as You Fat Bastard) ................. over the summer nine left – well, eight, really, because CB Darius Charles left on 1st July but came back on 15th August; Paris Cowan-Hall joined Colchester, Big Beast Nathan Tyson went to Notts County, Egyptian CB Adam Al-Abd MutuallyConsented and then signed for Stevenage, currently 24th in League Two with 3 points from 8 games (which is still better than League One Southend, who got their first point today after one-and-a-half Desmonds at home to Fleetwood) ... Stevenage also have Wycombe’s Craig Mackerel-Smith on loan ........

Other school leavers were Jamaica’s Mr Bean (Marcus - who retired), CB Ben Frempah and DR Congo GK Yves Ma-Kalambay (both of whom went to Free Agent FC), Michael Harriman who was an American politician, I seem to think, but who's now a Cobbler (well, it’s a living), and RB Jason McCarthy (recently arrived in Millwall) ................... They signed seven (not counting Darius Charles); four of those came from London clubs (LB Jamie Maacoli and CF Josh Parker from Charlton, MF Fred Onyedinma from Millwall and RW David Wheeler from QPR ...................CM Alex Patison moved down from Middlesbrough, and Coventry RB Jack Grimmer (so called because he’s a Scot, I gather, and there’s not much Grimmer than a Scot!)) ................ someone double-barrelled came from Hendon, which doesn’t count ...............

The season’s going ok; they’ve kept three clean sheets in eight, and after last week, when they did Lincoln with a hat-trick from Joe Jacobson, they were Top of the Pile, but they went to Gillingham today (and I keep getting flashbacks of Who Wants to be a Millionaire, cos I can hear Chris Tarrant going ............”You had 15 points ................ You’ve STILL GOT fifteen points – it was the wrong answer!”) where they lost their unbeaten record 0-2 .................. There are now only three unbeaten sides (Coventry, Ipswich and Donnie) and only three winless sides – Bolton, Southend and the Wombles; Bolton have one point (against, would you credit it, table-topping Coventry) and, as of today, one goal (having conceded 23 in their six League games) – that goal coming in their 6-1 pasting at the Millers ......... or is that their 6-1 grinding at the Millers? Form side is the Posh (W4 D1 of their last 5), with Sunderland on 12/5, and Ipswich and Donnie on 11/5; Lincoln are still 8th despite having lost 4 of the last 5 (they’re 8th because overall they’ve lost four but won the other four; you wonder if their bubble has burst with the departure of the Cowley Brothers – and you wonder if theirs has burst too .................

They once had a head coach called Sid Cann (I know his brother, Noah Cant – think about it!) and they were coached by snooker player John Reardon back in 77/78 (Ray? Ray Reardon? Was it? I thought it was John?); Jacobson’s hat-trick is “unique”, apparently, because he got one from a direct free kick and two direct from corners (which he took) ............ one of the corners, though, hit Lincoln’s Michael Bostwick on the line on the way in (which surprised him, because Lincoln were playing at Arsenal ........no they weren’t, I made that up!) ............. You Fat Bastard’s now 37 and in the 19th year of his career, and he’s played for 13 clubs (two of them – Northampton and Gillingham - twice each) and racked up over 600 games (“Legend! Legend!”)

The fans at Adams' Park have, as all fans do, have adapted well known songs to their Club; my Wycombe Song Favourite is “Molly Malone”, which now goes

“In Dublin’s Fair City, where the girls are so pretty,
I first set my eyes on Sweet Molly Malone,
And she wheeled her wheelbarrow, through streets broad and narrow,
Singing DA DA DA DA DA DA DA DA
WYCOMBE!”

Class!

And the person who links Gareth Ainsworth with Sarfend is Gary Waddock – one time manager of Aldershot, who Ainsworth replaced as Manager of Wycombe in 2012, and who has just been appointed Caretaker Manager at Sarfend ....................

Deadline for entries is, as always, scheduled kick-off time, which is 7.45pm on Tuesday 17th September ............... I do wish we’d stop letting Sunderland put three past us – and as someone else has already said, if we keep conceding – which we do – we’ll have to score at least twice every game if we’re going to get a win and 3 points, and that’s a tall order; we haven’t kept a clean sheet in the League for the past 25 games (the last was Gillingham on 29th January – and we didn’t score then either; of those 25 we’ve won 6, drawn 6 and lost 13 ................. we need to stick the ball in their net and stop them sticking it in ours – simple game, football!

Good luck to everyone! ................. Keep the Faith! .................. And thanks for playing!