After a tough start to life in League One, Wycombe went into September on the back of a fairly decent run at the end of August. The Chairboys won two of their last three games in all competitions and drew the other one, leaving them 17th in the league and into the hat for the League Cup third round.
The month kicked off with a home game against Luton which finished 1-1. In a hotly contested battle, both teams will have left the game feeling slightly disappointed with the result. Joe Jacobson saw his second penalty of the match saved with the game at 1-0 and could have killed off The Hatters. That moment was a changing point in the game and Luton may feel they were unlucky not to take all three points back to London after a flurry of late chances.
A Football League Trophy group stage win over Northampton would follow, thanks to a brilliant Scott Kashket goal. Next up in the league was an away trip to Charlton, who reached the League One play-offs last season. Despite taking an early lead through Randell Williams, Charlton’s quality shone through as they took a 3-1 lead. A late Paris Cowan-Hall goal was just a consolation and Wycombe’s suffered a third league defeat of the season.
Next up for the Blues was the ‘M40 Derby’, with local rivals Oxford coming to town. With both sides lingering at the wrong end of the table, this was a huge game. Both teams had chances, but neither were able to capitalise and the game ended in a 0-0 stalemate. Fulham U21’s posed a midweek test for Ainsworth’s men in the second round of the Football League Trophy games and goals from Alex Samuel and Kashket were enough to earn a 2-1 win for Wycombe.
The next game was a big test for the Blues, going to Portsmouth who were unbeaten and sitting pretty at the top of the table. The two sides have engaged in some intense battles in recent years, and this game provided entertainment that lived up to the spectacle. Wycombe took a first half lead thanks to a well worked goal from Bryn Morris, before Pompey cranked up the pressure in the second half and managed to turn the game on it’s head and take a late 2-1 lead. Many teams would have knocked down by this killer blow, but not Wycombe. A late penalty was awarded to the Blues after Fred Onyedinma was bundled over and Jacobson slotted the spot kick home, despite the huge pressure to earn the Blues a deserved share of the points.
There was no time to rest for Wycombe, who had to instantly switch their focus to a big midweek game against Championship side Norwich in the League Cup third round. Despite going 4-1 down, the Blues battled back and were unlucky not to take the game to penalties. Goals from Sam Saunders and a first of the season for Adebayo Akinfenwa made it 4-3, but Norwich kept the Blues out and that was how the game ended.
The month closed with a trip to Roots Hall, home to Southend United. Many a Wycombe fan will have felt particular emotion about this one, with the last time these teams faced off being the playoff final in 2015 (best not to talk too much about that one). Unfortunately, the Blues were unable to wreak vengeance on The Shrimpers and despite a late fightback yet again after going 3-0 down, Wycombe could only muster two goals and went home with nothing.
Summary/My Verdict
A busy month saw the Blues show the character and resilience that we saw so often last season, with late showings becoming a trademark for the Chairboys. Unfortunately, many of these comebacks in September amounted to nearlies but it is definitely something to build on.
Despite injuries beginning to come into play, there is a greater strength in depth within the squad this season and Akinfenwa rediscovering his goalscoring touch is crucial. Two goals in two games at the end of the month could be the start of a good run of form for ‘The Beast’. Despite only two wins in eight games (none of those in the League), Wycombe have by no means looked out of their depth in League One. Although they end the month in 20th position, the Blues did not lose any games by more than a goal and could easily have come away with more in multiple games. The results will come.
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