Tom Hounsell's Impressive Start as Interim Head Coach

Tom Hounsell is refusing to look beyond the next game, even as his audition for the Wycombe Wanderers job could hardly be going any better.

The 30-year-old interim head coach has stitched together three wins from three since stepping in after Michael Duff’s sacking earlier this month, dragging a struggling side away from trouble and into mid-table in the space of a fortnight. Wycombe were second-bottom when he took over. They now sit 14th in League One.

It started with chaos and character at Leyton Orient, a 3-2 victory in his first match in charge. That was followed by a confidence-boosting win over Chelsea Under-21s in the EFL Trophy. On Saturday, Wigan were the latest to feel the surge of a team suddenly playing with purpose.

The obvious question hangs over all of it: is Hounsell playing his way into the permanent job?

He is having none of it. At least not in public.

“I've said it before. My thoughts are never on myself, it's about the group of players,” he told BBC Three Counties Radio, batting away any talk of his own future.

For now, he presents himself as an employee doing the job in front of him, nothing more glamorous than that.

“I'm employed by this football club, ultimately, to help us get wins. That's my commitment and it's a commitment from the whole staff,” he said. “I'm pleased with the work we're doing, pleased with the momentum we're taking, pleased with the week that we've had but I haven't thought more about it than that.”

It is a grounded stance from a coach still at the very start of his managerial journey. Before Wycombe, Hounsell’s only taste of the hot seat was a 12-match spell as interim boss at Burton Albion in 2024, before Gary Bowyer came in. Now, with another club in flux and results suddenly turning, the parallels are hard to ignore.

Inside Adams Park, though, Hounsell keeps the focus firmly on the players and the environment he has walked into.

“Whoever is manager of this football club is in an incredibly blessed position. It's an incredibly privileged role to have,” he said. “Whatever happens with the manager's post, that individual will be extremely lucky to work with this group of players and the structure and processes that exist behind the scenes.”

The wins are stacking up. The table is shifting. The atmosphere has changed.

Whether the title on his door does too is a decision now looming for Wycombe’s hierarchy.