THIRD TIER RETURN:
It was announced on 26th June 2018 that Jacobson had extended his contract with Wycombe for another 2 seasons, with manager Gareth Ainsworth touting the defender as “one of the best – if not the best – left-back in the lower leagues”.
League 1 may have been uncharted territory for Ainsworth, who had yet to manage a full season above League 2 level but with the vast experience he’d gained in his tenure as Wycombe manager so far and the tribe-like mentality he’d embedded into the dressing room that would not be an issue.
The main challenge the legendary manager faced was the fact his club had one of the smallest budgets in League 2, let alone League 1. Signings would have to be shrewd and for the right price. This was aided when Sunderland poached midfielder Luke O’Nien for an undisclosed fee. Former players Ryan Allsop and Curtis Thompson returned to HP12 on permanent deals whilst Wycombe paid a fee to Barnsley to bring 2015-16 player of the season Jason McCarthy back. Randell Williams and the popular Fred Onyedinma returned on short-term loan deals whilst Akinfenwa was reunited with former AFC Wimbledon teammate Darius Charles.
With the previously mentioned O’Nien being the only big departure in the transfer window, importantly Ainsworth managed to keep the spine of his promotion-winning side together. Jacobson provided vital experience as during his last stint in the third tier with Shrewsbury he was voted player of the season for the Shropshire-based team.
It was a baptism of fire for the Wanderers as they only won once in their opening 10 fixtures, losing 4 and drawing 5. Jacobson once again got off the mark early when he smashed home a penalty early on but missed a second after halftime in a 1-1 draw against fellow newly promoted side Luton.
After 10 games the left-back sat on 2 goals and 2 assists with his side in 20th place just above the relegation zone on goal difference. Despite Wycombe languishing around the relegation zone it was reassuring to see Jacobson continuing his contributions from recent seasons in the division above, in a tight battle at the bottom of the table one moment of magic could be the difference between survival and relegation and Jacobson could certainly produce those moments.
Wycombe’s season was a real rollercoaster over the coming months with the Chairboys going from 6 unbeaten to 4 straight losses then 5 unbeaten then 10 winless seeing them as high as 9th place in December then falling all the way down to 20th by April, leaving Wycombe a point above the dotted line with 5 games left to play. Despite the struggles, Jacobson had once again matched his top-scoring season with 6 league goals and 5 assists, hitting double figures in goal contributions for the 3rd consecutive season which was made even more impressive by the fact that he was playing in a higher division.
Following a penalty miss and defeat at the hands of local rivals Oxford United, which sank Wycombe into even more trouble. For the first time at the club, Jacobson found himself dropped to the bench for the all-important run-in, he would have to watch from the sidelines as his teammates fought to keep the Chairboys in League 1.
A relegation 6 pointer in Southend-On-Sea saw Wycombe take a massive victory as 2 goals in 3 minutes from Adebayo Akinfenwa finally secured Wanderers the win they had been waiting for and steered them away from the drop zone. A visit to Spotland ended in defeat which had the Blues looking nervously over their shoulders again as the gap between Wycombe and AFC Wimbledon diminished to 2 points with 3 games left.
23rd place Walsall were next to visit Adams Park and in desperate need of a win if they were to stay in the league. A moment of magic was the difference as Wycombe once again delivered when it mattered thanks to Jason McCarthy’s free kick, running out 1-0 winners and putting a 4-point cushion between them and the drop. A defeat to relegation rivals AFC Wimbledon may have spelled trouble for Wycombe but with results going their way elsewhere the the only team in the relegation zone that could mathematically catch up to Wycombe now was Plymouth Argyle, who sat 3 points behind but were 12 worse off in goal difference, so a Plymouth victory and an unrealistically large swing of goals would be the only way Ainsworth’s side could be relegated heading into the final day.
Jacobson would make his return to the starting XI for the final game of the season and would return to the scoresheet, bending in a beautiful effort directly from a corner which was something Wycombe fans would get used to seeing over the next couple of years. Wycombe finished the season on a high with the 1-0 victory over Fleetwood and secured a respectable 17th place in their return to League 1.
The goal against Fleetwood meant that 2018/19 was Jacobson’s best season so far in terms of goals scored, seeing him go one better than last year’s tally of 6 with 7 this time around.