SM
Liverpool vs. Man Utd: 12 hrs 5 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews

Gareth Ainsworth hails Wycombe promotion as the club's "greatest hit"

:Headline: Gareth Ainsworth hails Wycombe promotion as the club's 'greatest hit': ID:406509: from db_amp
Wanderers beat Oxford 2-1 in the League One play-off final.

Wycombe manager Gareth Ainsworth hailed his side's promotion to the Championship as the club's "greatest hits".

Wanderers beat Oxford 2-1 at an empty Wembley Stadium to secure promotion to English football's second tier for the first time in their 133-year history.

Having been a non-league side until 1993, Wycombe have come a long way in recent years and suffered their own play-off final heartbreak under Ainsworth in 2015 in a bid to gain promotion to League One.

Joe Jacobson's 79th-minute penalty secured Wycombe's victory after a deflected Anthony Stewart header was cancelled out by Mark Sykes' looping cross-shot, and Ainsworth paid tribute to the journey taken by the club.

After the match, the Wanderers boss and part-time rock band frontman said: "This is Wycombe Wanderers' greatest hits by a million miles. It's rock'n'roll time.

"I've had some great texts off people. Martin O'Neill who's been fantastic, the absolute legend who brought this football club into the Football League, got a great text off him yesterday and it just calmed my nerves. It just settled me down that knowing somebody like him knows what a great achievement even getting to this play-off final was, never mind winning it.

"Little moments like that make all the difference, they enable me to be me and give the messages that I wanted to give to the boys."

Wycombe started the season in disarray with just nine players on the books and many tipped them for relegation, but Ainsworth's side pulled through with a core of players who had risen through the ranks with the manager.

"Darius (Charles), Jacobson, (Adebayo) Akinfenwa, (Matt) Bloomfield, four names there that have more than done their shift in the bottom two divisions and finally they've become Championship players today and I couldn't be happier for them," he said.

"It's an amazing place to be, one of the biggest leagues in the world, and Wycombe Wanderers are going to be playing in it next year."

Oxford boss Karl Robinson insisted his players never let him down although he expressed concerns that a number could leave over the summer transfer period.

Speaking after the match, the Us boss said: "We've got a very very young team full of talented individuals and for me to start next season without some of these is going to be another kick.

Karl Robinson shows his frustration after defeat at Wembley (Adam Davy/PA)

"We've lost so many players this year and we've almost hung on and achieved something that a few didn't think was possible.

"So I'll come in on Wednesday and I'm sure agents will be on the phone. I'm sure there's been a few football clubs here today watching our talented players and the beauty about that is my players never let me down.

"Today I think some of those players have shown the talent they possess."

amp_article__406509 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2020-07-14 17:18:50:
html db last update - 2020-07-14 17:18:50 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html

Click here for more stories about Gareth Ainsworth

Click here for more stories about Wycombe Wanderers

Share this article now:
Recommended Next on SM
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Birmingham CityBirmingham23165241172453
2Wycombe WanderersWycombe24156350262451
3Wrexham25156437181951
4Huddersfield TownHuddersfield23135536191744
5Barnsley2512673933642
6Reading2412573933641
7Stockport CountyStockport25108737271038
8Leyton Orient24114932221037
9Mansfield TownMansfield2311483126537
10Bolton WanderersBolton2311483534137
11Charlton AthleticCharlton239772721634
12Lincoln CityLincoln258892830-232
13Stevenage238781820-231
14Exeter CityExeter2494112831-331
15Blackpool247983235-330
16Rotherham UnitedRotherham237792123-228
17Wigan AthleticWigan2376102123-227
18Northampton TownNorthampton2568112439-1526
19Peterborough UnitedPeterborough2474134146-525
20Bristol Rovers2474132238-1625
21Crawley TownCrawley2355132443-1920
22Shrewsbury TownShrewsbury2445152444-2017
23Cambridge UnitedCambridge2445152243-2117
24Burton Albion2428142038-1814
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .