MANAGER Gareth Ainsworth says his League Two leaders can cope with the pressure that comes with being top of the table.


Wanderers host Northampton tomorrow, with Ainsworth knowing his pacesetters are there to be shot at. But it is a situation he is relishing.


He said: “Last year put us on the map as the team people wanted to beat and shoot down. We are there again and we know we’re a target again. I can hear the team talks in the opposite dressing room now. But it is a great place to be.


“People are talking about us rather than their own teams and that is good. It shows we are being recognised for what we do. The moment they stop talking about you, you start to worry.


“Wycombe get big respect off opposing managers and teams now. We are seen as genuine contenders in every game which is brilliant. There are no games we go into where we feel we are going to get beaten. That doesn’t happen anymore.”


The Blues manager continued: “When I was here as a player, Wycombe were seen as a team to take points off. Now we’re a scalp and people celebrate when they take points off us and that’s a huge compliment.


“Teams know they are in for a game when they come here. We are not going to win every time but we are going to compete and at the start of every game we can see a win and that’s a brilliant feeling to have.


“We can win matches in different ways as we’ve shown this season. There has been something in every performance to take. We’re not invincible and we’d never be arrogant enough to say we are the best.

But there’s that we’re never beaten attitude. And even when we get beat we are never beaten.”
Wanderers have reached the summit without two thirds of their spine as centre forward Paul Hayes and centre back Anthony Stewart have been spending time in the treatment room, while wide man Sam Wood has also been injured.


Ainsworth said: “They are big players who would walk into most League Two teams and to get them back will be a great boost. It speaks volumes for the others that we’ve reached the top without them.”
Wood will be back in the squad tomorrow while Hayes’ Achilles injury has not stopped him training this week.


Ainsworth said: “He’s training, he’s fit, he’s just not doing everything the others can do. He won’t be far away.”


Ryan Sellers will be assessed by a doctor today. He was knocked out by the ball in Saturday’s win  at Exeter and subsequently, under league rules missed Tuesday 1-0 win over Cambridge, which took Wanderers top.


Ainsworth said: “There’s no memory loss so it’s looking good.”


And Ainsworth will need his men to be in tip-top condition tomorrow.


He said: “Northampton is always a fiercely contested game and we are expecting the same. We’ve always had great battles with them. It feels like a derby game, they bring a lot of fans. They a big side, a physical side and we will be up against it.”