Football Season Review

Wycombe Wanderers enjoyed a successful season with ended in celebration after winning to promotion to League One having finished in third place under manager Gareth Ainsworth. The Chairboys had missed out on a place in the play-offs for the previous two seasons and Ainsworth was dealt a blow with the loss of defender Aaron Pierre during the summer. He replaced him with defender Adam El-Abd whilst making a couple of key additions in strikers Craig Mackail-Smith and Nathan Tyson. Talismanic striker Adebayo Akinfenwa continued where he left off with another stellar campaign and the side lost just two of their opening 14 league matches at home to promotion rivals Notts County and Luton Town. One of the catalysts for their success was the creativity from midfielder Eberechi Eze, who was signed on loan from QPR. He contributed five goals before his loan ended in January and with Akinfenwa already into double figures they were pushing for automatic promotion. A 3-2 win away at Luton Town in January established their credentials in a run of seven wins in eight matches. They lost just one of their last 11 matches and sealed promotion on the penultimate weekend of the season with a 2-1 win away at relegated Chesterfield. It was achieved without defender Anthony Stewart, who had been sidelined since Christmas, whilst defender Michael Harriman and striker Scott Kashket both returned from lengthy injuries towards the end of the season. Goalkeeper Scott Brown was an ever-present between the sticks as was Joe Jacobson, who also provided a number of assists from left-back. Dominic Gape and Luke O’Nien pulled the strings in midfield. It was Adebayo Akinfenwa who stood out again, finishing as leading goalscorer with 18 goals and voted player of the year for a second successive season.

Player of the Season: Adebayo Akinfenwa