Blues throw it away again

Accrington Stanley 1 Wycombe Wanderers 1

Wycombe Wanderers were denied their first away win of the season when Rory Boulding's stoppage time equaliser cancelled out Matt Bloomfield's 66th minute goal.

The Blues may be unbeaten after five league games but their solitary victory against Morecambe on the opening day of the season is a distant memory now and the last thing they needed was to concede a heartbreaking late equaliser for the second week in a row.

Stanley, on the other hand, will feel that a point was the least they deserved from the game.

In an evenly matched first-half Wycombe's best efforts came from strikers Ben Strevens and Scott Rendell.

Strevens' 14th minute volley from a Matt Bloomfield cross needed a goal-line clearance from Stanley's Phil Edwards to keep it out, while Rendell's dipping shot twenty minutes later hit the crossbar with keeper Ian Dunbavin well beaten.

Further opportunities fell to the lively Bloomfield, who linked-up well with Strevens before firing a tame shot into Dunbavin's arms and had a further effort blocked after collecting a superb crossfield ball from Gareth Ainsworth.

Shortly before half time a shot from Danny Foster struck Strevens and deflected wide leaving the full-back with his head in his hands convinced that his effort was goal-bound.

Accrington saw long-range shots from Jimmy Ryan, Andy Proctor and Sean McConville sail over the crossbar before they were thwarted by the woodwork following another a fine strike from McConville after 26 minutes.

Stanley came out all guns blazing at the start of the second-half and Dean Winnard had a shot deflected wide before Jimmy Ryan saw another long-range effort flash narrowly past the post.

Blues' keeper Nikki Bull then made two fine saves, the first from Andy Parkinson and the second from a Jimmy Ryan free-kick.

Wycombe manager Gary Waddock reacted by bringing-on Jon Paul Pittman and Stuart Beavon in place of Rendell and Strevens with half an hour still to play.

Six minutes later the Blues were in front when Pittman fed Betsy who found Bloomfield unmarked at the far post and the midfielder fired the ball high into the net from close range.

Stanley pressed for an equaliser but were restricted to further long-range shots from Ryan and a blocked effort from McConville before Wycombe's Bloomfield went from hero to zero with a dreadful miss from point-blank range.

In a glorious opportunity to go two-up after 84 minutes, Kevin Betsy had the chance to take a shot himself or leave the ball for Pittman to strike but instead elected to roll it to the unmarked Bloomfield who somehow contrived to put the ball wide from just a few yards out.

It was a miss which came back to haunt Wycombe when their failure to keep possession deep in the opposition half and some sloppy defending by Andy Sandell and Lewis Montrose gifted an equaliser to Stanley's Rory Boulding in the fourth minute of stoppage time - making it two weeks in a row that the Blues have thrown away two points at the end of a game.


Wycombe Line-up

Bull, Foster, Winfield, Johnson, Sandell, Ainsworth, Montrose, Bloomfield, Betsy, Rendell (Pittman 60), Strevens (Beavon 60).

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