Ainsworth bidding to be Wembley winner at last

GARETH AINSWORTH hopes to make it third time lucky at Wembley tonight — and make history with Wycombe in the process. The manager has lost on both his previous trips to the national stadium, but victory against Oxford United would see his side promoted to the second tier for the first time in their 133-year existence. ‘It’s a huge game, the biggest in the club’s league history without a shadow of a doubt,’ said Ainsworth, who lost the 2015 League Two play-off final to Southend as Wycombe boss and was beaten by Wycombe while playing for Preston in 1994. ‘Every time I’ve been to Wembley it involves Wycombe and I’m hoping it’s third time lucky.’ It is quite a turnaround for Ainsworth, English football’s longest-serving manager, whose side would have dropped to the Conference in 2014 but for a final-day win at Torquay. ‘There’s nothing to lose (today) because Torquay away in 2014 we had everything to lose,’ said the 47-year-old. ‘That could have been the end of Wycombe Wanderers.’ Oxford boss Karl Robinson admits his best players will leave if the club don’t win promotion today. ‘The only way we can keep this team is by finding ourselves at the next level, where a lot of my players keep telling me every single week that’s where they deserve to be,’ said Robinson. ‘So if you deserve to be there, get there wearing yellow.’