Three points at Wycombe ?

The latest of Charlton's wanderings takes us to Wycombe this Saturday where a win would consolidate our place in the play-off positions but anything less might push us back into the chasing pack. 

After Tuesday night's travels to Walsall in the 'southern' section of the EFL Cup, we head northwards again at the weekend to face Wycombe Wanderers at Adams Park but because of the lack of London clubs in League One this season, the match almost has the strange feel of a local derby.

Maybe it's fitting though that we are facing Wycombe in the week of a rare league cup success considering that our first ever competitive meeting with The Chairboys came in 2006. Then, in what some might call classic Charlton fashion, we blew what seemed an easy chance to reach the semi-finals of the Carling Cup. That was the season when we had as many managers as the League Cup has had sponsors!

In many ways last season had echoes of that with the change of managers mid-stream and then again at the end of the season. This time around, under new manager Ben Garner, we have got off to a better start than in the past couple of seasons despite allegedly still being on the lookout for a couple more signings. The 5-1 midweek hammering of Plymouth Argyle was followed up by a slight blip against Cambridge last weekend, so we are hoping to get back to winning ways against Wycombe.

Gareth Ainsworth's side though will be hoping to give their own season momentum with a home win to lift them up the table. Last season, they reached the play off final where they lost 2-0 to our old friends Sunderland but have made a slow start this time around. But as that old cliché goes, you don't become a bad side overnight. Wycombe are a quality side, packed with players we will have come up against not just in League One in recent times but also for other opponents in The Championship.

Those players include the likes of Welsh striker Sam Vokes who has both past and recent form against us. Then there are other internationals such as Jamaican winger Garath McCleary and Irish international Daryl Horgan. Like Derby County, who we faced in our first home game of the season, Wycombe are a team with lingering traces of having competed in a higher division in recent times. Though we were up in the Championship fairly recently too, we have gone through a lot more changes in the intervening period.

That said, on our day, we are a match for anyone in this division. With the news that the in-form Corey Blackett-Taylor is fit for Saturday's journey, we can go there with confidence in getting something. Possibly a point would be a good result but right now we are in a greedy mood. Three would be nicer.

Tickets for away fans are still on sale at the time of writing.