Wycombe Wanderers Plot Path to Promotion

Wycombe Wanderers thrashed Burton Albion 4-1 on Tuesday evening to avoid the ignominy of losing four League Two games in a row for the first time since 2007.

The win has seen the Blues clamber back into the automatic promotion positions and up to second place as they plot their path to promotion with fifteen games remaining.

Manager Gary Waddock brought in Lewis Montrose for maligned loanee Scott Donnelly and Jon Paul-Pittman in place of the slightly more unfortunate talisman, Stuart Beavon.

Although Montrose had only featured for the Blues twice since November, his inclusion was certainly no gamble by Waddock as he produced a swashbuckling display of commitment and poise. Montrose's fine evening was capped off by his deflected effort, Wycombe's second goal, that looped over Burton goalkeeper Adam Legzdins.

The midfielder's delight at scoring his first goal since September was clearly evident as he took the plaudits from the crowd and his team-mates before exhaling deeply as he skipped back to the half-way line, closed eyes and a vocal expression of cathartic jubilation visible to all.

In truth, Wycombe could easily have scored more, the aforementioned Pittman was unlucky not to score his second goal for the Blues since returning from his five-month injury lay-off, his electric pace troubling the visitor's defence all evening and the striker's two quick-fire efforts after Wycombe's first goal had to be parried away to safety by Legzdins.

Wycombe's recent poor run had seen them fall to fourth place in the npower League Two table however the Burton game represented a chance to reclaim the upper hand on their promotion rivals.

An all-round strong team performance began with midfielder Stuart Lewis shuffling through a static Burton defence, with referee Oliver Langford obstructing the advancing defender, to calmly fire the ball into the back of net with only 10 minutes gone before Montrose's effort increased the Wanderers' advantage on the half-hour mark.

Lewis, awarded a well-deserved man of match accolade, then proceeded to score the goal of the evening and possibly Wycombe's best goal of the season. In what is looking to be a gem of a signing from Dagenham and Redbridge, the midfielder added to his burgeoning reputation amongst Blues fans by unleashing an unstoppable low drive into the bottom right-hand corner of the Valley End net.

Following the game, Lewis declared to wwfc.com, that it was his 'best game ever' and one he understandably thoroughly enjoyed.

It was perhaps obvious that Burton manager Paul Peschisolido would chasten his team during the half-time interval and demand the addition of composure and zeal to their play. The Brewers had lost Calvin Zola to a hamstring injury during the first-half, a crushing blow as despite his wayward control and finishing, he had looked their most promising attacking outlet until he was replaced by Greg Pearson.

The aforementioned Pearson looked to exploit Alan Bennett's comparitive lack of pace as Burton appeared reinvigorated following the resumption of the game. The reward for their endeavour was Sam Winnall's close-range effort to reduce the deficit eleven minutes into the second-half and the away side were beginning to unsettle Wycombe who had failed to replicate the intensity they displayed prior to the break.

Any hopes the Brewers were harbouring of a dramatic comeback were extinguished when the veteran Moore tussled with the lively Pittman who was rewarded with a penalty kick. Stuart Lewis had an eye on claiming his first senior hat-trick although he had to settle for a brace as striker Scott Rendell stepped up to score his 12th goal of the season, in front of just 3,345 fans at Adams Park.

The Blues issued the perfect response to a week of disappointment that saw consecutive defeats to Bradford City, Southend United and Accrington Stanley.

As the 2010/2011 season prepares to usher in its spring denouement, Wanderers will travel to Macclesfield Town and league leaders Chesterfield in the next week, two sides who had beaten them by a 2-1 scoreline in the reverse fixtures.

Following the victory over Burton, Wycombe have now won 8 of their 16 games against teams in the bottom-half of League Two this season. Macclesfield, however, enjoy a seven point cushion over Stockport County in the last remaining relegation place and will be buoyed by their 2-0 home triumph against Morecambe yesterday.

The journey to Derbyshire to meet league pacesetters Chesterfield next Tuesday evening represents a stern test for Waddock's charges although they will take confidence from previous away wins against members of the current top seven, including a 4-3 victory over Rotherham United and a 2-0 win at Priestfield, the home of Gillingham.

The last and only time I attempted to predict the outcome of all 46 games in a regular Football League season was prior to the 2002/2003 campaign. I ambitiously plumped for the Blues team in question to reach the play-offs. As it turned out, the season was a campaign of listless disenchantment and Wycombe Wanderers finished 18th in Division Two, playing some of the worst football in the club's recent history.

The 'Sanchez Way' to promotion following the FA Cup honeymoon season that was 2001/2002 was to be a return to outmoded drudgery and aimless percentage football, a strategy of methodical zonal domination with long-balls into pre-determined danger areas, a philosophy arguably still favoured by Wycombe's erstwhile manager.

This 'revolutionary' approach ultimately imploded with feverish expectations of possible promotion to what was then Division One going unfulfilled with Sanchez becoming increasing fraught at any perceived criticism aimed towards him and the team. The protracted decline that led to relegation in 2004 had already cost the former Wimbledon FA Cup hero his job and I have not been comfortable commenting on any upcoming Wanderers game since.

Alas, this meandering digression may illustrate the futile hopelessness of my powers of prediction altough it also leads into further analysis of the challenges that lie ahead.

The Wanderers still have to travel to Shrewsbury Town, Bury and local rivals Oxford United besides having the pleasure of the visits of Northampton Town and a potentially charged affair with Aldershot to negotiate.

Whilst I am not prepared to risk damaging the team's promotion chances with further outlandish conjecture, there can surely be little chance of collapse if Wycombe continue in the same vein as yesterday evening.

If the Blues can continue to be exponents of this type of high-tempo, pressure football that is often accompanied by the clinical precision as demonstrated against Burton, then re-establishing themselves in the top three will represent an achievable goal.

As Gary Waddock enthused to skysports.com after the match, "we knew they would respond because they are an excellent group of players and they put it right."

Let's hope that for the majority of Wycombe's remaining fifteen games, the Blues continue to find the winning formula as they bid for promotion back to League One.