Matt Bloomfield. 15 years at one club for a professional footballer is incredibly rare these days and on his 500th appearance for Wycombe Wanderers, Blooms turned in a Man Of The Match performance against Sunderland at Adams Park.
In the week leading up to that game, I sat down with Matt to talk about life, football, 500 career apps, 15 years and counting at Wycombe plus what the future holds:
“A disappointing result but not a disappointing performance”
Wycombe Wanderers lost at Adams Park to Gillingham, extending their winless run to five games.
Substitute Regan Charles-Cook forced the ball home on 82 minutes with his first touch, leaving the Chairboys frustrated for not taking their chances earlier in the game.
After the match I spoke to the Wanderers manager Gareth Ainsworth on BBC Three Counties Radio:
Wycombe head to Kenilworth Road on the back of a five match unbeaten run whilst Luton Town haven’t tasted defeat in the EFL since last October.
The Hatters are top of the league and have the in form James Collins upfront who is the current EFL1 Player Of The Month and also the leading scorer in the division.
Ahead of the game, I spoke to the Chairboys manager Gareth Ainsworth:
“We go there with the intention of winning the game”
Former Wycombe Wanderers player Andrew Harman presented his investment plans for the club to Chairboys fans last night at the Holiday Inn.
Over 150 people were in attendance at the open forum event which was called by Harman himself just two days earlier.
During the presentation, Harman revealed plans to invest £2m into Wycombe Wanderers over five years to address the financial losses at Adams Park whilst aiming to increase revenues by improving the clubs commercial performance.
An additional £1m was pledged to launch a youth academy, fronted by another former Chairboy Ken Wilson, at a sight within a ten mile radius of Adams Park that would include a 4G pitch.
Harman revealed that his potential investment would be for a minority stake in Wycombe Wanderers for the first two years with the desire to increase this to a majority if the fans were happy with the progress.
During the meeting, Harman highlighted his connections with businesses and schools in the local area.
The evening finished with a question and answer session during which some fans voiced their frustration at the Trust board for not putting forward Harman’s proposal as a viable investment option for the club.
After the presentation, I interviewed Mr Harman for BBC Three Counties Radio:
In a statement released on Monday evening, Wycombe Wanderers Trust and Wycombe Wanderers FC chairman Trevor Stroud said:
“We have always declared that we have been in discussions with more than one interested party and I can only reiterate that Bill and Jim’s proposal remains the recommended route forward for the Trust board. We will never close the door on any potential interest until such point that our negotiations with Bill and Jim reach a conclusion, but theirs is the best deal for the club in the view of the Trust board.”
Bill Luby and Jim Collis will present their investment proposal to Trust legacy members at 7:30pm on Monday 28th January at The Hub, Union Baptist church, Easton Street, High Wycombe.
The Americans require 75% of the vote for their proposal to succeed with voting opening on Monday night for a period of three weeks.
Wycombe Wanderers picked up their third EFL1 away victory of the season in a tight affair against Bristol Rovers.
A second half Side Jombati header was enough to seal the three points and maintain the Chairboys eight point gap from the relegation zone.
After the game I spoke to the Wanderers manager Gareth Ainsworth on BBC3CR:
“It was such an important result as it could have gone either way”
Wycombe Wanderers equaled a club Football League record with their six consecutive win at Adams Park with an impressive victory over Barnsley. After the game, I spoke with Chairboys midfielder Dom Gape:
Gape: “We are giving ourselves a chance in every single game”
Wycombe Wanderers fought back from a goal down to snatch a late winner against Accrington Stanley at the WHAM Stadium.
It was the first Chairboys away victory in the league since late August and Gareth Ainsworth was delighted with the three points to back up the clubs excellent home form.
I spoke to the Wanderers manager after the match for BBC Three Counties Radio:
