For the second time in 26 days, Wycombe Wanderers will take on Bristol Rovers and it’s fair to say that a lot has happened in that short space of time.

With players returning from injury, new signings, and new hairdos on show, can the Chairboys earn what will only be their sixth victory away at the Memorial Stadium this century?

Or will the afternoon belong to the Pirates?

Here is everything you need to know for when Bristol Rovers take on Wycombe Wanderers on January 21. 

Current Form and Background on Bristol Rovers

When The Gas visited Adams Park on Boxing Day, they came to Buckinghamshire as one of the in-form teams in the country across the 92.

They had only lost one of their 12 last league games and moved from as low as 21st to as high as ninth in just over two-and-a-half months.

That purple patch saw the club pick up 23 points from 36 available, with their only blip being a 4-2 defeat away at Derby County where they shipped four first-half goals on October 29.

However, since their loss against the Chairboys on December 26, Rovers have gone on to lose three of their last five games, conceding 10 goals in that time.

Rovers also lost their last fixture 2-0 against Accrington Stanley, which was Stanley’s 10th victory in the last 13 games over the West Country side.

In the transfer market, Rovers have signed one player so far – goalkeeper Ellery Balcombe from Brentford on a six-month loan deal.

Current Form and Background on Wanderers

Since that victory over Bristol Rovers on Boxing Day, Wycombe have only played three matches.

Two have ended in 1-0 defeats against promotion-pushing Plymouth Argyle and Sheffield Wednesday respectively, yet despite the losses, Wanderers' performances in both matches would indicate that a draw would have been a fair result in each fixture.

Their only win since that triumph a day after Christmas was a 3-0 victory against Peterborough United on New Year's Day.

Lewis Wing, who scored in the win against Bristol Rovers last month, bagged a brace against the Posh, which means he has now scored five times in his last 11 games.

Additonally, the good news going into the game on Jan 21 is that Alfie Mawson could return to the squad.

He has missed the last four matches with a knee injury.

The Last Five Meetings

2022/23: Wycombe Wanderers 2-1 Bristol Rovers

2019/20: Wycombe Wanderers 3-1 Bristol Rovers

2019/20: Bristol Rovers 0-0 Wycombe Wanderers

2018/19: Bristol Rovers 0-1 Wycombe Wanderers

2018/19: Wycombe Wanderers 1-2 Bristol Rovers

Overall Away Record Against Bristol Rovers

Games: 20

Wycombe Wanderers wins: Nine

Draws: One

Bristol Rovers wins: 10

Overall Record Against Bristol Rovers

Games: 42

Wycombe Wanderers wins: 18

Draws: Five

Bristol Rovers wins: 19

Miscellaneous

  • The referee for this weekend’s fixture is Charles Breakspear
  • His assistants are Justin Amey and Grant Taylor, and the fourth official is Andy Bennett
  • Breakspear has officiated 17 Wycombe games in his career with 10 ending in wins, three ending in draws, and four ending in defeats
  • Out of those 17 matches, he has sent off two Wanderers players – Giles Phillips and Dom Gape against Peterborough United in January 2020, and against Brentford in September 2020 respectively 
  • Wycombe’s last victory at the Memorial Ground was on January 19, 2019 – when Sido Jombati scored a close-range header to win the match 1-0 for the Chairboys
  • Out of the five draws to have taken place between these two clubs, only one has happened this century
  • This was in August 2019, when Rovers and Wanderers played out a 0-0 draw at the Memorial
  • Incredibly, that is the only time out of the 42 games between the two sides that a draw has been recorded at the home of Bristol Rovers
  • The other four have all been played at Adams Park
  • Brandon Hanlan is expected to face his old club for the first time in Bristol since joining Wycombe in August 2021
  • He played 49 times for the Pirates across all competitions in his only season during the 2020/21 campaign, as they were relegated from League One after a five-year spell
  • Some other notable players that have represented both clubs include Scott McGleish, Matt Harrold, Richard Walker and Chris Zebroski (to see a full list, click here)

The match will kick-off at 3pm.