WANDERERS boss Lawrie Sanchez will tell his players 'Stop Steve Howard tomorrow and you stop Luton'.

It is less than a month since the Hatters beat Wycombe 2-1 at Adams Park with a first half Howard double and the memory is still fresh in Sanchez's mind.

He said: "Howard was devastating that day. He caused us all sorts of problems and it is important that we get to grips with him.

"If you get to grips with Howard you get to grips with Luton."

Play-off chasing Luton are the last team to beat Wanderers but since then The Chairboys have been on fire, ending Bristol City's 19-match unbeaten run, hammering Northampton 5-0 and grabbing two draws to stay unbeaten.

Sanchez will name an unchanged side from the team that drew 2-2 with second-placed Oldham on Saturday, which means supersubs Richard Harris and Darren Currie will again have to be patient.

They will be joined on the bench by fit-again centre back Paul McCarthy who has recovered from the back strain which kept him out of the picture last weekend.

December's Luton defeat was Macca's last match in first team colours and it prompted a defensive shake-up by Sanchez with the abandonment of the 4-4-2 system.

Since that defeat, Sanchez has played with five at the back and until last weekend's Oldham match, that formation hadn't conceded a goal in open play.

Sanchez said: "We've been looking a lot tighter and we will need to show those qualities again because Howard and Tony Thorpe is about as potent as a forward partnership as you can get in the division.

Luton have only played two games since their win at Wycombe with matches at Blackpool and Plymouth off, a narrow defeat at Chesterfield on New Years Day and a 10-man victory at Barnsley on Saturday.

Their inactivity has left them six points off the last play-off place, but they do have two games in hand.

But Wycombe can travel in good heart. Luton have lost four times at Kenilworth Road this season to Peterborough, Barnsley, Mansfield and Colchester.

But there was nothing wrong with Lutons erratic home game form in their last match in Beds when they outplayed championship-chasing Cardiff on Boxing Day and beat them 2-0.

Wycombe have only beaten Luton once in 11 attempts, but that was on their last visit to Kenilworth Road in January 2001. Adam Locke gave Luton the lead midway through the first half, but two goals from Andy Rammell just after the break gave Wycombe a 2-1 victory after boss Lawrie Sanchez made an inspired triple substitution to turn the game around just like he did against Oldham last week.

Return to this site after the game for a full match report.

January 24, 2003 11:30