Wycombe Wanderers v Accrington Stanley

THE reds
opposition view
We spoke to Accrington Stanley fan Kirsty
Maynard ahead of today’s fixture about what
can be expected from the Reds.
How has the off season gone
for Accy? Talk us through your
preseason fixtures.
Our preseason has gone well, with
a good 3-1 result over Blackpool
in a behind closed doors game,
and a very good 1-1 home draw
with Preston. We finished with
a 2-0 defeat to a good Bradford
side but won against local teams.
We’ve had news that a new training
facility and work at the Wham
Stadium on the main stand has
seen widespread changes, many
thanks to our great chairman Andy
Holt.
You’ve made some new signings
ahead of the season. What impact
do you think those players will
have in the side?
Our business in the transfer market
has been very good and the
permanent signings have made
us stronger in squad depth. John
O’Sullivan returning to the club
is a big boost on the right-hand
side. We’ve made some good loan
signings, notably James Trafford in
goal on loan from Man City. Harry
Pell is a very good addition to add
to our midfield and Mumbongo on
loan from Burnley is highly rated
from our Lancashire neighbours.
Liam Coyle and Josh Woods are
exciting youth players who will get
their chance to prove their ability
over the season.
Accrington placed a very
respectable 11th place last season
in League One. What will be the
target for this season?
The target for this season will
be to improve on last season’s
finish, and even push for play offs.
We struggled with COVID/other
postponed games last season
and injuries last season so if that
doesn’t happen, we could surprise
a lot of teams in this division! We
won’t worry about relegation,
and we are capable of beating
any side in the division. We enjoy
upsetting the big guns, and teams
won’t enjoy coming to the Wham
Stadium.
Who are the key Accrington
players that Wycombe should
watch out for?
The most notable player would be
Dion Charles. Our top scorer from
last season and capped by Northern
Ireland for the first time in the
summer, he has bags of pace and a
great eye for goal. His strike partner
in Colby Bishop is a dangerous
player on his day! We have a strong
defence, Michael Nottingham
and Ross Sykes are old-fashioned
defenders who are dangerous in
the air. Sean McConville and John
O’Sullivan will provide pace and
width out wide and will cause any
full backs in this league problems.
Matt Butcher is a technically good
midfielder who alongside Joe
Pritchard will help the front two in
causing issues in the box.
What sort of style will manager
John Coleman want to play against
Wycombe on Saturday?
We will look to play a counter
attacking but passive type of game,
we like to play the ball on the floor
and deliver crosses from wide areas,
but we aren’t afraid to mix it up and
go long! Dion Charles and Colby
Bishop are a dangerous partnership
and Joe Pritchard will be dangerous
in providing from midfield! We’ve
taken a risk by signing Tommy Leigh
from Bognor Regis, however this is
a typical Stanley signing. Coleman
likes getting players from non-league
and giving them an opportunity at
Football League level, and we have
had great success of doing this over
the years.
Finally, what’s your score
prediction?
1-1. Vokes for Wycombe and
Charles for Stanley. Coley will
however go for the win; he won’t
sit back and take a draw. He trusts
his team to go for goals, so it
wouldn’t surprise me if we won 2-1,
with a late winner.
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