Wycombe Wanderers’ Garath McCleary hopes to play until 40
Wycombe Wanderers winger Garath McCleary believes he can play up until the age of 40 and that he ‘feels 26’ following the Chairboys’ 2-1 win at Bristol Rovers.
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Wycombe Wanderers winger Garath McCleary believes he can play up until the age of 40 and that he ‘feels 26’ following the Chairboys’ 2-1 win at Bristol Rovers.
The 36-year-old came off the bench and scored the second after being put through by fellow substitute, Brandon Hanlan, on 74 minutes.
The goal was his first of the season in which he has appeared off the bench in each of Wanderers’ last five league games.
He said: “I’m excelling in speed and strength tests at the moment, and this is something that I wasn’t doing before
“It’s down to the club and myself have managed things and it’s probably why all my stats are through the roof.
“Hopefully I’ll be able to take up what Bayo [Adebayo Akinfenwa] and the gaffer [Gareth Ainsworth] did and that’s play until I’m 40, 100 per cent.
“Anything is possible.
“Also, I’m still hitting speeds from when I was in my 20s so why not?
“I feel 26 and you need to trust your body so if I know I’m feeling something, I have more of a license to ask for an extra day of rest, and I’m grateful to the [current] gaffer and the medical team for that.
On his link-up play with Hanlan, McCleary added: “We had been talking in the week about how we don’t really slip each other in.
“I did a few for him and he returned the favour, and I’m thankful to get the shot on target as it was a great ball by him.
“We know there is a lot of competition in the squad but hopefully that will help us thrive to get the best out of everyone.
Finally, manager Matt Bloomfield added: “We all know the quality that Garath has given this football club over the past few years and he’s a top guy.
“He’s a huge player for us and we want to make sure that his value isn’t diminished if he isn’t starting games.
“He’ll start games along with Brandon too.
“Having that pace and power in the team is fantastic and the way they linked up was very good.”