Blues hunt second win in a row

Wycombe Wanderers travel to Oldham Athletic on Saturday for their 14th league game of the season.

The league table currently shows Wycombe in 19th place with 12 points and Oldham in 13th spot with 17 points, both sides having played 13 games.

Oldham's Home Record......W 2 - D 2 - L 2 - Pts 8 - Ppg 1.33 (Rank-12)

Wycombe's Away Record....W 2 - D 1 - L 4 - Pts 7 - Ppg 1.00 (Rank-16)


This is Oldham's 15th consecutive season in the third tier of English football, the last 14 having yielded 6 top-half and 8 bottom-half finishes. Their best two campaigns ended in play-off semi final defeats to QPR in 2003 and Blackpool in 2007.

Delving back a bit further, the Latics were promoted from the old fourth division in 1971 and have never returned.

Over the last 40 years they've spent 17 seasons in the third tier, 20 in the second and 3 at the highest level of English football.

Three defeats in a row at the start of the current campaign left the Latics bottom of the pile and out of the Carling Cup, but a steady revival has seen them climb to mid-table and earn a place in the Area quarter finals of the Johnstone's Paint Trophy.

Shefki Kuqi and former Chairboy Reuben Reid have both scored five goals already this season, but with Reid injured and four of his strikes coming from the penalty spot anyway, Kuqi represents Oldham's greatest threat on Saturday.

Signed by manager Paul Dickov during the summer, the 34 year-old Finnish international has bags of experience and only last season made six appearances for Newcastle United in the Premier League.

The Latics will be without the injured Reid for six weeks and are also missing James Tarkowski and Josh Parker (who made a single loan appearance for Wycombe last season). Centre-half Zander Diamond could be fit to play following a back injury.

The Blues are aiming to record consecutive victories for the first time this season following their impressive 3-1 win at Hartlepool last Saturday.

So far this season, every league win has been followed by a defeat, but Wycombe's last two performances have inspired cautious optimism that the trend can be bucked at Boundary Park.

A 2-0 win over AFC Wimbledon in a practise match on Tuesday provided valuable playing time for the likes of Marvin McCoy, Kevin Betsy, Matt Bloomfield, Joel Grant and Elliot Benyon, but manager Gary Waddock is unlikely to stray far from last weekend's victorious starting eleven.


Here are some stats......


Oldham's last five games (All Competitions)

Lg1: Brentford (H)..............Lost 0-2

Lg1: Exeter (A)..................Lost 0-2

JPT: Scunthorpe (A)...........Won 1-0

Lg1: Franchise (H)..............Won 2-1

Lg1: Tranmere (A)..............Lost 0-1



Wycombe's last five games (All Competitions)

Lg1: Preston (H)..................Lost 3-4

Lg1: Rochdale (A)................Lost 1-2

JPT: Cheltenham (H)............Lost 1-3

Lg1: Walsall (H).................Drew 1-1

Lg1: Hartlepool (A)..............Won 3-1



Oldham Goal Stats (15 games in all Competitions)

Goals Scored (Total).........Lg: 14...Cups: 2...Total: 16

Goals Conceded (Total).....Lg: 19...Cups: 1...Total: 20

Goals Scored (Home)........Lg: 6.....Cups: 1...Total: 7

Goals Conceded (Home)....Lg: 7.....Cups: 1...Total: 8

Clean Sheets....................Lg: 2.....Cups: 1...Total: 3



Wycombe Goal Stats (17 games in all Competitions)

Goals Scored (Total)..........Lg: 14...Cups: 8.....Total: 22

Goals Conceded (Total)......Lg: 20...Cups: 11...Total: 31

Goals Scored (Away).........Lg: 8.....Cups: 0.....Total: 8

Goals Conceded (Away).....Lg: 11...Cups: 0.....Total: 11

Clean Sheets.....................Lg: 1....Cups: 0.....Total: 1



Oldham's Top Goal Scorers - (All Competitions)

Shefki Kuqi....................5

Reuben Reid..................5 (inc 4 pens)

Matt Smith.....................2

Four other players have each scored 1 goal.



Wycombe's Top Goal Scorers - (All Competitions)

Stuart Beavon...........7

Scott Donnelly...........5 (inc 2 pens)

Joel Grant.................2

Ben Strevens............2

Five other players have each scored 1 goal.



Oldham Shooting (Top-3) - All Competitions

Reuben Reid..........14 on-target.....9 off-target...0 against woodwork

Chris Taylor.............9 on-target...13 off-target...0 against woodwork

Shefki Kuqi..............9 on-target.....7 off-target...0 against woodwork



Wycombe Shooting (Top-3) - All Competitions

Scott Donnelly.........13 on-target...11 off-target...0 against woodwork

Stuart Beavon.........18 on-target.....2 off-target...0 against woodwork

Joel Grant.................7 on-target.....9 off-target...0 against woodwork



Shooting (Club) - League Games Only

Oldham...........57 on target...73 off target...2 against w'work (Rank-14)

Wycombe........50 on target...61 off target...3 against w'work (Rank-22)



Most Assists

Oldham - Chris Taylor...........3

Wycombe - Andy Sandell.......3



League Form Guide

All Season

Oldham.......Pld: 13...W: 5...D: 2...L: 6...Pts: 17...Pts per game: 1.31

Wycombe....Pld: 13...W: 3...D: 3...L: 7...Pts: 12...Pts per game: 0.92



Last Five league Games

Oldham............WLLWL - 6 points (Rank-17)

Wycombe........WLLDW - 7 points (Rank-11)



Last Five League Games (Home)

Oldham..........WDDLW - 8 points (Rank-10)



Last Five League Games (Away)

Wycombe.........LLLLW - 3 points (Rank-21)



Against Top Half Opposition

Oldham........Pld: 6...Pts: 4...Pts per game: 0.66...(Rank-19)

Wycombe.....Pld: 7...Pts: 7...Pts per game: 1.00...(Rank-9)



Against Bottom Half Opposition

Oldham.........Pld: 7...Pts: 13...Pts per game: 1.85...(Rank-12)

Wycombe......Pld: 6...Pts: 5.....Pts per game: 0.83...(Rank-24)



Previous Meetings

In 16 previous meetings there have been 7 wins for Wycombe, 3 for Oldham and 6 draws.

At Boundary Park there have been 3 wins for Wycombe, 2 for Oldham and 3 draws.

1997/98 Lg1: Oldham 0 Wycombe 1

1998/99 Lg1: Oldham 0 Wycombe 0

1999/00 Lg1: Oldham 2 Wycombe 2

2000/01 Lg1: Oldham 2 Wycombe 0

2001/02 Lg1: Oldham 2 Wycombe 0

2002/03 Lg1: Oldham 0 Wycombe 2

2003/04 Lg1: Oldham 2 Wycombe 3

2009/10 Lg1: Oldham 2 Wycombe 2



The Man In The Middle

Saturday's referee is David Webb from Lancashire who was promoted to the National List of Referees in 2008. His one and only Wycombe game was a 1-1 draw with Leeds United at Elland Road in January 2010. So far this season he's issued 3 red and 41 yellow cards in 13 games.



Prediction

Oldham 1 Wycombe 1

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