By Matt Cecil

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Wanderers supporter Ian Stringer has told wwfc.com in an exclusive interview that he holds Blues boss Paul Lambert in higher regard than 'The Apprentice' chief Alan Sugar after spending three weeks on the BBC One show.

The 26-year-old has developed a strong affiliation for the Adams Park side having reported on the Blues' fixtures for more than four years for BBC Three Counties Radio, and after being 'fired' from the show on Wednesday night, Stringer can now focus his attentions on reporting on what he hopes will be a successful end to the campaign for the Wanderers:

"It's a cracking club," he told us. "Ever since I started reporting on the Blues four years ago my allegiance has grown and grown and I've always been welcomed by the staff at Adams Park. Now I've got to know some of the players and I have a great relationship with the manager, and I would say that I probably respect Paul in his industry more than I respect Sir Alan in his because of everything he's achieved."

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"It would take a lot to drag me away from Adams Park."

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Ian was chosen by Sir Alan Sugar as the third person to leave the show after the team under his leadership lost a challenge to serve food at a London pub. Despite being let down by a rather unhelpful head chef, Sir Alan laid the blame at the feet of the Blackpool-born reporter, and Ian believes he didn't deserve to be fired:



"I'm gutted to be out," he said. "I envisaged going a long way and I really believed I could win, so I'm really annoyed to be out because I gave it my all.

"But I'll always have fond memories of my time on the show and I'm proud of my achievements. We took £800 in one night in a pub that had never served food before, and we beat the girls' team in week two which I'll never forget. But I hate not winning."

Stringer's exit drew millions of viewers on BBC One and was followed by its 'sister' show called "You're Fired", in which Ian wore a WWFC club tie as he discussed his departure with presenter Adrian Chiles, and he also wore a Wycombe tie on the BBC Breakfast show the next morning in an interview with Wanderers World commentator Bill Turnbull in which the Blues were mentioned regularly:

"I'm more than happy to try and raise the profile of the club," Ian told us. "It's an opportunity to go out and say to people that there are some good honest footballers out there who aren't earning huge salaries who are followed by some fantastic supporters.



"I have enormous respect for families who bring kids to see an honest game of football and if I could drag people to see matches at this level then I would. It's easy to support Spurs, Arsenal or Chelsea but Premiership clubs don't need the money - clubs like Wycombe do."

A Leicester fan as a child, Ian was in the Filbert Street crowd to see his beloved Foxes lose 2-1 to the Wanderers in the FA Cup quarter-final of 2001 - a moment which made him "more sick as a supporter than any other match I've ever seen" - before beginning his radio career with BBC Three Counties in 2004 to report on the Wanderers.

"I'd worked in the studio but it was a bit like being thrown into the deep end when I started covering the Blues," he recalled. "I was a stranger to Adams Park in my first game, which was the 2-1 win against Cambridge in the first game of the 2004/05 season and my first interview was with Tony Adams after the game.

"I've seen some great matches in the four years but you can't look further than the Carling Cup for the best achievement. To go to Stamford Bridge and still have a chance of beating Chelsea to get to the final was incredible, and I remember walking up to the stadium with a sense of pride to be involved with Wycombe.

"There have also been some really good players at the club and for me, it's tough to pick between Matt Bloomfield, Russ Martin and Mike Williamson for the best. Blooms probably edges it; he epitomises everything that's good about football with his passion and enthusiasm and he's given fantastic service to the club."



Blooms will be alongside Ian in the press area at stadium:MK on Saturday as the Blues take on their North Bucks rivals in a crucial League Two encounter, and even though Stringer has reported on Dons games on an occasional basis, he knows which side of the fence he sits on:

"My reporting for the BBC has to be impartial but if you open my jacket on Saturday there'll be a blue shirt on underneath," he said. "It's a huge game for both teams and Wycombe will really be going for the win so I'd encourage everyone to go along. Some people might be unhappy about MK Dons but they don't claim to be Wimbledon - they've got their own history, they've got a really vocal support and a gorgeous stadium."

And what next for the man who has already appeared on a hit BBC show and written a song which hit the top ten of the pop charts?

"I want my media career to continue," he said. "I adore what I do and it would take a lot to drag me away from Adams Park."

Listen to Ian and Matt Bloomfield as part of the BBC Three Counties commentary team from this weekend's crucial encouter on 98FM. Wanderers World will also be there as always to provide the usual commentary with Ross Jeavons and Matt Cecil, so there's no excuse for not keeping up with the action!