Gareth Ainsworth

Gareth Ainsworth

Ainsworth as a QPR player (September 2005).
Personal information
Full name	Gareth Ainsworth
Date of birth	10 May 1973 (1973-05-10)
Place of birth	Blackburn, England
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Playing position	Midfielder
Club information
Current club	Wycombe Wanderers
Number	7
Youth career
1989–1991	Blackburn Rovers
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1991–1992	Northwich Victoria	14	(4)
1992	Preston North End	5	(0)
1992–1993	Cambridge United	4	(1)
1992–1993	→ Northwich Victoria (loan)	5	(0)
1993–1995	Preston North End	82	(12)
1995–1997	Lincoln City	83	(37)
1997–1998	Port Vale	55	(10)
1998–2003	Wimbledon	36	(6)
2002	→ Preston North End (loan)	5	(1)
2002–2003	→ Walsall (loan)	5	(1)
2003	Cardiff City	10	(0)
2003–2010	Queens Park Rangers	141	(36)
2009–2010	→ Wycombe Wanderers (loan)	2	(0)
2010–	Wycombe Wanderers	78	(14)
Teams managed
2008	Queens Park Rangers (caretaker)
2009	Queens Park Rangers (caretaker)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 15:38, 15 February 2012 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals).

Gareth Ainsworth (born 10 May 1973) is an English footballer who plays as a midfielder for League One side Wycombe Wanderers, he is also the club captain.

A former youth player at Blackburn Rovers, he won a move to Preston North End in 1992 after impressing at non-league Northwich Victoria. He moved on to Cambridge United, who in turn loaned him back to Northwich Victoria. He returned to Preston North End in 1993, and established himself in the first team during his second spell at the club. Sold on to Lincoln City in October 1995 for a £25,000 fee, his performances at Lincoln earned him a place on the PFA Third Division Team of the Year in 1996–97, and also won him a £500,000 move to Port Vale in September 1997. After being named as the Port Vale F.C. Player of the Year in 1998, he was sold on to Premier League Wimbledon for £2 million in October 1998. He was dogged by injuries at the club, and following loan spells with Preston North End and Walsall, he moved on to Cardiff City for a nominal fee in March 2003. He signed with Queens Park Rangers in June 2003, after went on to spent seven years with the club, before he allowed to join Wycombe Wanderers in February 2010, following a short loan period. During his time at QPR he helped the club to win promotion out of the Second Division in 2003–04, and twice served as caretaker-manager. He was named in the PFA League Two Team of the Year in 2010–11, as Wycombe won promotion out of the division. He has played more than 500 professional games.

Playing career

Early career

Ainsworth started his career as a trainee with Second Division club Blackburn Rovers, but despite forming a useful partnership with Peter Thorne he was not offered professional terms at the end of his two year training period. He dropped into the Football Conference with Northwich Victoria, scoring his first goal in the 3–1 home victory over Cheltenham Town on 26 October 1991. His form attracted the attention of Third Division club Preston North End and, in January 1992, they offered him a second chance at the professional game. Released at the end of the 1991–92 season, Ainsworth joined First Division Cambridge United under the management of John Beck. Ainsworth had a spell on loan with former club Northwich Victoria, making his second debut for the "Vics" in a 2–1 home victory over Bromsgrove Rovers on 5 September 1992. Beck was sacked by Cambridge in October 1992 but was swiftly appointed manager at Preston North End, and in December returned to the Abbey Ground to sign Ainsworth.

Preston

Ainsworth's second spell with Preston lasted three years. Preston reached the Third Division play-off final in 1994, and Ainsworth played in the Wembley final, but could not prevent Wycombe Wanderers winning the game 4–2. Preston reached the play-offs again the following year, but exited at the semi-final stage with a 2–0 aggregate defeat to Bury.

Beck left Preston following the disappointments at the play-offs, and was appointed manager at Third Division rivals Lincoln City.

Lincoln

In October 1995 he signed Ainsworth for a third time, this time for a fee of £25,000. In 1996–97, Ainsworth scored 22 goals to make him the division's second-highest goalscorer after Wigan Athletic's Graeme Jones. For this achievement he was named on the PFA's Third Division Team of the Year. A popular player at Sincil Bank, Ainsworth was voted fourth in the club's top 100 legends after a poll conducted in May 2007.

Port Vale

In September 1997 he signed for John Rudge's First Division Port Vale for a club record £500,000 fee. He became the club's Player of the Year for his performances in the 1997–98 season.

Wimbledon

He moved to Premier League side Wimbledon in November 1998 for a £2 million fee, again a club record for Port Vale. His time at Wimbledon would be dominated by struggles again injury. He played just eight times in the 1998–99 season, failing to score. He was limited to just two appearances in 1999–2000, though in the first of these, a 3–3 draw with Newcastle United at St James' Park, he did find the net twice. At the end of the season the "Dons"' were relegated into the First Division.

He regained his fitness by January 2001, and managed twelve league and six FA Cup games in 2000–01. After missing the entire first half of the 2001–02 campaign, he returned to fitness only to find that he had lost his first team place due to the form of promising youngster Jobi McAnuff. Ainsworth was told that he was to be released in summer 2002, and was allowed to join former club Preston North End on loan in April 2002. He played five games for Preston, scoring one goal. He returned to Wimbledon to find that he was to be offered a new contract, after the club announced it was considering a potentially lucrative move to Milton Keynes.

After six appearances for the "Dons" in 2002–03, he was allowed to join Walsall on loan in December. He scored for the "Saddlers" against Nottingham Forest, but his loan deal was not extended. He scored twice in nine games upon his return to Wimbledon, before March 2003, when he moved to Second Division Cardiff City on a short-term deal for a "small fee". The "Bluebirds" won promotion to the First Division as play-off winners, though Ainsworth played no part in the victory over Queens Park Rangers in the final at the Millennium Stadium. His stay with the club was brief, as manager Lennie Lawrence told him that he could not guarantee him a first team spot. Both before and after his release from Cardiff he was linked with a permanent move back to Walsall, but manager Colin Lee had limited funds available for new players.

QPR

Ainsworth signed for Second Division Queens Park Rangers in July 2003. He scored twice on his debut, in a 5–0 win over Blackpool on 9 August 2003. Sixteen days later he made it five goals in four games with a brace against Rushden & Diamonds, one a volley from 35 yards, and another a powerful drive from the same distance. QPR won promotion to the First Division as Second Division runners-up at the end of the 2003–04 season.

Despite suffering with a knee injury in 2004–05 that limited him to 23 appearances, manager Ian Holloway offered him a new contract at the end of the season after telling the media that "he's an important player to have around". During the disappointing campaign of 2005–06, Ainsworth came second in the Player of the Year awards behind Danny Shittu, and finished joint-top-scorer on eleven goals with Marc Nygaard.

During the 2006–07 season, Ainsworth struggled with injuries, and his season ended in April after a scan revealed that he had broken his leg in a win over Luton Town. During the 2007–08 season, he assisted new manager Luigi De Canio in addition to his 25 games, and stated his intention to move into coaching once his player career is over.

In May 2008, Ainsworth accepted a player coach role under new QPR boss Iain Dowie. Dowie was sacked in October 2008, and Ainsworth was appointed as caretaker-manager. On taking up the reins, Ainsworth announced that "QPR is very strong with the result of what happened and will stay strong, nothing is going to break us". During his time in charge QPR managed to test Manchester United at Old Trafford in a League Cup encounter that was only settled by a 76th minute Carlos Tévez goal. This performance caused Ainsworth to believe that the club could achieve promotion to the Premier League. He remained on the club's coaching staff after Paulo Sousa was appointed as manager in November. Sousa's reign did not last long however, and on 9 April 2009, Ainsworth again took the role of caretaker-manager.

He was considered for the vacant management position at former club Lincoln City in September 2009.

Wycombe Wanderers

Gareth Ainsworth and the Wycombe mascot, The Comanche

On 20 November 2009 Ainsworth joined League One outfit Wycombe Wanderers on a month long loan. He went on to sign an eighteen month contract with Wycombe in February 2010. He scored his first goal for the club in a 2–2 draw with Exeter City on 20 March 2010. However the club were relegated at the end of the season.

The club achieved promotion out of League Two at the first attempt in 2010–11, after finishing in the third automatic promotion spot, a single point ahead of Shrewsbury Town. Ainsworth scored eleven goals in 46 appearances, and captained Wycombe to the 3–1 victory over Southend United that ensured the club promotion on 7 May 2011. Later that month Ainsworth signed a new one year contract with the club. For his performances he was named on the PFA League Two Team of the Year.

Style of play

Ainsworth is able to play on the right-wing or as an attacking midfielder, and has good crossing ability; he was also known as a pacey player in his 20s and early 30s.

Personal life

During his playing days Ainsworth picked up the nickname 'Wild Thing' due to his appearance and his rock star ambitions; he was in a band called 'APA' with Wimbledon teammates Chris Perry and Trond Andersen; he was also in a band called 'Dog Chewed the Handle'. He is considered a cult hero at Preston, Wimbledon, QPR, Port Vale and Lincoln City.

On 21 October 2010, he represented The Football League at the unveiling of the Footballers' Battalions memorial on the site of the Battle of the Somme.

Honours

Individual

• PFA Third Division Team of the Year: 1996–97
• Port Vale F.C. Player of the Year: 1998
• PFA Football League Two Team of the Year: 2010–11

with Queens Park Rangers

• Football League Second Division runner-up: 2003–04

with Wycombe Wanderers

• Football League Two third-place promotion winner: 2010–11

External links

• Gareth Ainsworth career stats at Soccerbase
• garethainsworth.com (last updated August 2002)