If football matches lasted for 80 minutes instead of 90, Wycombe would now be sitting comfortably in the top half of League One, but an alarming habit of conceding late goals has left them looking anxiously over their shoulders at the wrong end of the table.

Wanderers have let in more goals in the last ten minutes of games than any team in the division, and defending a lead has become their Achilles heel with eleven points dropped from winning positions this season.

It happened again in their last outing against an average Lincoln City side who should have been put to the sword long before they equalised deep into stoppage time.

Missed chances and a tendency to defend too deep once again cost the Chairboys dearly, and it’s a problem that needs addressing urgently if they are to return to winning ways.

Their next opponents Port Vale also left Adams Park with an undeserved draw a month ago when they drew level in the last minute of a game dominated by Wanderers.

The return fixture takes place at Vale Park on Saturday, January 20 where the Chairboys go in search of only their second win in the last 16 league games.

The solitary victory in that spell came against Bristol Rovers, another game in which they contrived to concede late goals despite having a seemingly comfortable 3-0 lead.

Matt Bloomfield’s men are currently seven points above the relegation places, but they can’t afford any complacency with tough games before the end of February against four of the top six teams in League One

It makes the visit to Vale Park a crucial match, and a repeat of last season’s 3-0 win there would provide a welcome boost in confidence for players and fans alike.

Wanderers have an excellent record against Vale with just three defeats in their previous nineteen meetings, winning seven and drawing the other nine.

Vale’s last game away to Reading was abandoned when around one thousand home supporters invaded the pitch to protest against the club’s owners.