WANDERERS boss Gareth Ainsworth was all smiles as Wanderers got their Wembley hangover out of the way in double quick time with a comprehensive 3-0 victory over York City at Adams Park this afternoon.

Goals from Anthony Stewart, Aaron Amadi-Holloway and an own goal gave them a perfect start to the new campaign.

Ainsworth said: “There was never going to be a hangover for me because I was so proud and pleased with last season when we achieved more than we set out to do.  It is just a continuation of what we were doing last year.

He said: “It’s nice to have the result but I know as much as anyone that there’s a long way to go. It’s a great start, a good performance but that is all it is.

“It was nice to see some of the new boys take on how we are playing. There were some great individual performances but the team will always be the big thing for me.”

Blues took just eight minutes to blow the Wembley cobwebs away with a goal from centre back Anthony Stewart, the defender who was back at the club after snubbing a contract 12 months earlier.

And the returning Wanderer could not have found a better way to endear himself to those fans he turned his back on last year.

“Ainsworth said: “It was the perfect way for him to do it. I brought Anthony here just looking forward. There is no past, there is no history with Anthony Stewart, yeah he has been here before, he played a great part in the Torquay survival day, and then had a year out finding his feet elsewhere. It sometimes works, it sometimes doesn’t, but you can’t deny anyone the opportunity to try at a higher level. It didn’t work for Anthony so I thought ‘right, I will take him back any day’.

“I think the fans would have given him a good reception anyway, scoring or not scoring. Anthony has come back a young man, he left a boy if I’m honest with you, but he’s come back a young man and sometimes you need those experiences away just to mature you and I believe that once again Anthony Stewart will be turning the heads of higher league clubs.”

Despite the manner of their opening-day win, Ainsworth was not wavering from his ambitions of hitting 61 points, which would have been a 12th placed finish last year.

He said: “Sixty one points is our target. We’ve got 58 more to go. There’s no talk of promotion. The wounds of Torquay (When Wanderers needed a win to stay in the Football League) are still raw, they still hurt me. That day is in my memory a lot and I will do everything I can on the touchline to make sure I never go back to that day.  It’s been the biggest learning curve I’ve ever had in football. We had a fantastic season last year, but at the moment let’s just get to where we want to be in year two of our plan which is 61 points.”

Despite setting a modest target there was no such caution with Ainsworth’s team selection as he unleashed a trio of strikers – skipper Paul Hayes, Garry Thompson and Aaron Amadi-Holloway – from the word go.

Ainsworth said: “We attack with purpose and the formations we play are attacking formations. I was an attacker, it’s in me, I love seeing goals going in. I base a lot on the strength of the defence we’ve got so we can go forward and express ourselves. It looks like an attacking line-up but once again we’ve kept a clean sheet so it’s a real pat on the back for the defence.”