Match Reports

MKDons Academy U18’s by Junior Don; Hannah Seeley (aged 10 ½)

Saturday 10^th September 2005: Crystal Palace 2 - ¬ MKDons 3 ¬

Travel and Facilities: As this game was near to many of the boy’s homes, most of them went home on the Friday night and their family’s bought them to the game for a 9:30 warm up with planned 11am kick-off. Our family set off with Sam Collins at 07:45 from Milton Keynes heading for Crystal Palace training ground and had a clear run down the M1 but less so drive through London, past the oval with finally arriving at the ground at 09:20am. Limited parking so we had to park outside and walk back to the ‘gated’ ground. Ryan had travelled home to Southampton the night before but had to leave at 07:00 and arrived with his mum & dad 5minutes before us and most of the other boys had about 30minutes journey. It was a damp morning with threat of rain so we all had umbrellas and waterproofs ready but where not needed. The facilities where nice and there was a hot food and drink available so after a bacon roll and a cup of tea I was ready with pen and pad to hand to write up my first Academy report.

Warm up & Team: A good warm up with Mike Dove on a damp Saturday morning in London! Team: Robert Webb, Adam Kent, Sam Collins, Murphy, Sam Page, Joe Howe, Dean Lovegrove, Adam Moriarty, RossMorley, Jamie England, Sam Baldock. Not used J Page, Michell-Coop, Missing: Rebecca physio as she was to be in attendance for the first team at Brentford later in the day… No team sheet supplied for the Crystal Palace players.

Attendance: approx 55 + a few overlooking houses and spectators from the cricket pitch opposite that happened to overlook the field that we played on.

The Game: Shortly after kick off 11:06 Rob Webb was forced to save an attempt from Crystal Palace and once again at 11:07 with a near miss from a header that went wide. 11:10 their No.10 missed the goal again and at 11:13 forced another save by Rob from a free kick after a late challenge.

11:14 saw great defending by Sam Page who headed away another attempt from their challenging No.10. 11:20 saw an unlucky missed cross from Jamie England.

11:22 Adam took his first corner which was headed by Sam P but it skimmed over the bar – unlucky Sam! 11:26 another corner from Adam that had the opportunity of a cross but was missed. 11:32 saw an attempt by Crystal Palace but clearly off target and the action continued with another attempt at 11:34 from their no.9 but again a miss!

Then Dean Lovegrove gave a strong kick that just went over the cross bar which was a shame as the ball headed long with no defence from Crystal Palace! This was followed by Sam Page tacking their No.10 that led to a free kick from their No.4. An unlucky attempt by Sam B was blocked with good defence from Palace which went on to Sam Page denying their No. 7 a shot at the goal.

11:30 saw an unlucky reflection off one our players that then went into the net to give Palace a goal. With heads up the Dons keeper Rob saved a good attempt from their no.10 but they kept coming at us strong and at 11:42 their No.9 scored the second goal.

Half time and Crystal Palace 2 and MKDons L.

After a disappointing first half, the Dons came back strong…. a near miss with a slightly wide goal attempt followed by a fierce shot from Dean L that the keeper could not hold secure and dropped it and with Adam M there to ensure it went into the back of the net - an MKDons goal @ 12:14… The action then continued in this really exciting second half with a lovely tackle from Sam Collins which saw a cross blocked before reaching Sam Baldock. A foul from Crystal’s no.6 on Sam B was taken by Jamie England and crossed to Adam who ran at amazing pace before being blocked at the same time that Adam K and Joe was taken down by Crystal player tackles and to our surprise the Ref gave the ball to Palace! Then a foul against Dean L gave us a corner opportunity which Adam M skimmed across the goal before leading to another corner which in turn led to one of the Palace defenders taking down Ross in a rather unfair tackle but it did lead to a free kick which was unfortunately saved. Then great defence by the Dons denied Palance from getting another goal. Adam M then continued his cracking game by taking a 25yarder which the palace keeper just tipped over the post. By now our hearts were all pounding wanting to equalise and Crystal’s No.10 obviously now desperate fouled Ross which gave us a change but Ross just missed from a cross set up by Sam B. Crystal’ defender chasing a speedy Ross led to a nasty tumble which bought the game to a short break while their physio attended. A free kick for the No.3 Crystal player led straight to Jamie England who then played to Sam Collins who gave a chance for Adam to shoot but it was reflected by their defence. All action now as at 12:40 saw the ball going to Palace and off the bar which Sam Collins picked up and crossed to Dean which was nearly knocked in to Crystal’s goal by their No.10. Shortly afterwards Adam K headed away a goal and then an unlucky run led to Joe being tackled by Palace’s No3 (with attitude) who appeared to hack straight into his ankle which required treatment on the pitch by our physio.

The match clearly heated up as Crystal Palace was beginning to get worried. Joe then quick off the mark, served a fantastic turn by Sam B straight into the top of the goal to even the score!

We were then further denied a goal with another foul but earnt a free kick after palace’s No.8 argued with the ref and then promptly kicked the ball away… (temper temper!) The game had really picked up pace with clear panic in Palace’s eyes and a win in the Dons – the final minutes saw Sam B use his left foot with a strong kick to secure the final goal that he had worked so hard for, straight into the bottom corner of the goal. There goes the whistle and its official:

A WIN – MKDons 3 Crystal Palace 2…..!!!!

Summary

: A great action packed match that worried us in the first half with Crystal Palace showing strength, aggression and an early goal but not without opportunities. In the second half the Dons clearly came back the stronger side (their weetabix must have kicked in) and with fantastic team effort clinched the game with a final goal that secure a deserving win! Great game with true team effort and determination to win.

Weather: Wet/damp start but the sun came out and there was a nice breeze.

Ground: Good pitch that was medium

Injury’s:

MKDons Goals: Adam Moriarty, Sam Baldock and Jamie England

Corners: Taken mainly by Adam

Players of the Match: Adam had a really good game as did Ross, Jamie and Sam B who has lots of pace!

If you want to see a great game and support our Academy – come and support the U18’s this Saturday 17^th September

Chelsea v MKDons U18– Woughton-on-the-Green 11 O’Clock Kick off

(so enough time after to get across to NHS to watch the Barnsley Game…)

MK Dons 3 - Fulham 1

With no first team action last weekend, it was left to the young Academy players to provide the entertainment, and that they did in style, with a well deserved 3 – 1 win over visiting Fulham. Mike Dove had good reason to be proud of the team, who never really looked as if they would be beaten, and were dominant throughout the first half We could only wonder why there was only the solitary goal from Sam Baldock to show for their sterling efforts at half time The second half was awaited with great enthusiasm, and we were rewarded with a goal from Sam Page after only 11 minutes. But much against our expectation the team then lost its way for a brief while and we were left wondering if, in emulation of recent first team performances, the match would slip from their grasp. Thankfully within a few minutes they rallied round, and despite conceding a goal, they were soon back on form to see the match out with an entertaining flurry which could have seen the final score higher than the creditable tally of 3 goals, goalscorers being Sam Baldock, Sam Page and Dean Lovegrove. MKDSA spoke after the match with Dean Lovegrove, and asked how he felt the match had gone. "we were a bit disappointed to concede a goal" he admitted. "At half time we knew we could win, and our aim was to keep a clean sheet, but for a while we seemed to lose our way a bit and that gave them the chance to pull one back." Dean has been with the Academy for 10 years now, and is pleased with the way things are progressing. "Most of us moved up with the Academy from London, and now we are really starting to gel as a team having played together for so long" he says " It’s been good to get a result today, and for me personally to score the third goal after some excellent build up play with the final cross from Howe, I got my foot to the ball and it went in!" MKDSA members will be able to read more from Dean in the next newsletter, as we are committed to helping our members get to know more about the Academy Players, and the role of the Academy in the Community, this season. We will be featuring regular interviews with Academy Players, and hope that many more of you will find the time to support the home matches at Woughton on a Saturday morning at 11am.

The next match for the lads is at Crystal Palace on Saturday, where they face a team that has drawn, won and lost their last three fixtures. Crystal Palace matches have seen a fair few goals, with scores of 3 – 3, 7 – 2, and 0 – 4, T.Lyons and Peltonen notching up 3 each so far. Why not support the lads in the morning, and dash over to Brentford straight after!

Please note that the Official site is featuring a regular Monday Academy update that carries a detailed match report.

Flowing football was the order of the day when Milton Keynes Dons met the might of Athletico Madrid at the NHS today (Sunday).

Whilst the Dons gave a good account of themselves throughout the first 45 minutes they failed to put away any of the several chances they created, with Izale McLeod the main culprit who could have snatched a deserved equaliser after 10 minutes – but when clean through and instead of placing the ball into the empty net, he went for power and blasted high.

The Spanish supremos had taken an early lead, but even this goal had more than an element of luck when a shot from distance by Peter Luccin took a wicked deflection and left Matt Baker stranded.

In the 15^th minute the Spanish side were two goals to the good when a rare Dons` defensive error allowed Raul Medina to score from close range

At times the Spanish side moved the ball about with ease and delighted the 5044 crowd with some very well worked one touch football that at times had the Dons` players chasing shadows.

This was quality football that perhaps the Dons aspire to, but they did not let their mighty opponents overwhelm them.

At times Athletico did break through but Matt Baker produced an excellent performance throughout and had the crowd on their feet when he made a superb one handed save from close range from Rodrigues.

What the Dons players did display was that they are certainly ready for the new campaign which kicks off with a home game against Bournemouth at the NHS on Saturday – but one consolation is that the south coast side will not demonstrate the same skill and speed often demonstrated by the fast moving Madrid side.

With Mcleod showing a real appetite for work up front and Paul Mitchell frequently holding his own in a packed midfield the Dons battled throughout, although they can be forgiven if their appetite drifted somewhat when Athletico scored their third goal on the hour.

And what a goal it was – as though the Spanish were saving the best until last. Fernando Torres was brought on early in the second half – much to the delight of the Dons fans and his silky skills were soon in evidence.

The goal came following the breakdown of a Dons` attack on the edge of the Madrid penalty area; a quick ball out to the right was followed by an exquisite pass to Torres which totally bypassed the Dons` midfield. Torres moved the ball quickly out to the right and then thundered forward ready to receive the return pass and he struck a low drive into the corner that left Baker no chance.

There were many positives to come out of this game however, and supporters feel confident that with this kind of display against a top European side the Dons should fair well in Division One in the coming season.

Buckingham Town Review

Buckingham Town 0 Milton Keynes Dons 3

MK Dons pre-season trip to neighbours Buckingham Town on Saturday ended in a leisurely 0-3 win.

Dons Manager Danny Wilson used no less than 20 squad players to give both the home and visiting supporters a memorable afternoon in a game that was played in the torrid heat of an afternoon more suited to the other national sport.

But the game was not as one-sided as the scoreline suggested, and the Robins gave a spirited performance throughout, with some of their young players proving to be capable of testing the Dons players.

The hard and uneven playing surface proved a difficult obstacle for the more professional MK Dons players, but they eventually settled and started to test the Robins defence, and only poor finishing restricted the half time scoreline to a single goal.

Izale McLeod time and again tormented the Robins defence and he eventually broke through to volley home from the edge of the penalty area. But this came after referee

Richard Beeby had ruined the afternoon when red-carding the young Robins goalkeeper after he had accidentally fallen out of the penalty area when gathering a high cross – much to the vocal dis-satisfaction of both sets of supporters. This came late in the first half, but he made some amends when he allowed the Robins to field another keeper without forfeiting an on-field player.

Inevitably it was Dons hero Gareth Edds who put the game beyond doubt midway through the second half when he slotted home easily from close range when put through by Nicki Rizzo and a third goal from new signing Wilbraham minutes from the end provided the Dons with a respectable result.

Next Saturday MK Dons will play a pre-season friendly against Newport Pagnell (kick off 3pm) and Dons supporters are reminded that all supporters are invited to attend a pre match barbeque at the Newport Pagnell ground which will start at 12 noon.

The day started badly with the hastily put together supporters 7 a side team being beaten by Peterborough supporters team 7 – 4 in the glorious spring sunshine. Anglia Soccer night (will be shown Wednesday night @ 11:30pm) fan cam was there to record the valiant efforts put in by those that played. After the match those that played joined more of our supporters who had taken up Peterborough Supporters Club’s kind offer of using the Starlight bar for pr match refreshment and the normal fans banter.

So to the match – firstly a big THANK YOU to Peterborough for opening the terrace for Dons supporters – this certainly added to the atmosphere at the game. Next major point was that player power won and the black kit made a rare appearance, much to the delight of the Dons supporters who are getting totally confused with the variations of red and white away kits that we have worn this season. The teams were announced and it was good to hear Rizzo and Smith were playing which meant that we were playing with width and creative passing ability,

The match hadn’t long started when Rizzo seized on a poor clearance from Arber and smashed it into the top left-hand corner of the net from 20 yards – a dream start. Shortly after Gary Smith took a free kick that landed neatly at the feet of McLeod giving him a simple tap in – two nil and chants of "Easy" started to come from the nearly 700 travelling Dons supporters as the game was being totally dominated by the Dons.

The second half started with the Posh trying to turn the game around but finding the Dons back four more than equal to the task breaking down the Posh attacks time and time again with Baker virtually a spectator. Rizzo began to look tired as he ran himself into the ground and was replaced by Crooks with Lewington pushing up into the left midfield role. Small put through a lovely through ball to McLeod who went one on one with Tyler – memories of the Bristol City match came flooding back BUT he must have been practising during the week as he made no mistake and the Dons were 3 nil up. He left the field to applause from the Dons fans straight after as Westcarr was thrown into the fray. It seemed like a lifetime for the final whistle to come but when it did the celebrations amongst the travelling fans lifted the roof off!

A great day and a great time which was made all the more pleasurable by the genuine hospitality of the Peterborough supporters. It was a shame that their end of season award ceremony was scheduled for a few hours after the defeat but at least ours on Sunday night will be VERY upbeat!

Luton Review

Like many others I took the opportunity of watching the U18's playing at the NHS for the first time this season. Memories of their last match at the ground came flooding back as Joe Howe emerged. Their very first match at the NHS had featured Howe as the team took on Southampton. I can still recall the scream of pain as he was thrown into the air, landing on his shoulder which was instantly dislocated. It was good to see the lads play at the NHS away from the usual surroundings of Woughton on the Green even though they lost to Palace via a flattering scoreline that did not reflect the the Dons display.

Next up was the short coach journey to Luton via the fleet of excecutive coaches laid on by the club. Our three Police outriders escorted us all the way from Milton Keynes to the ground clearing the traffic out of the way and giving us priority at roundabouts and traffic lights. The only downside was that it felt like we were doing 20mph all the way there as the speed was kept down to ensure that the eight coaches stayed together!

Once there we were informed that all the pubs were full and we'd have to enter the ground straightaway. Not the best of starts to say the least!

On entering the ground it was good to see Paul Heald interacting with a young family in one of the Luton executive "conservatories" by lightly throwing the ball to the youngsters so that they could head it back to him. It reinforced on me that our club is truely a "family" club where individuals count and players and staff do not have an elevated view of themselves.

The teams were announced - yet again we had the same starting lineup although Rizzo and Smithy had now lost their places on the bench to JP and Lauren Herve. If we went behind the bench had very little to offer in creative players - a worrying sign. Right from the kick off Luton were at our throats, seemingly carving through our midfield at will with Chorley and Bilong having to make telling tackles to stop their progress. Crooks was under pressure on the left hand side and he seemed not to have any answers to the Luton guile, Trent on the other flank also appeared to be having an off day with Luton attackers beating him all too easily. Thank goodness for Matty in goal - yet again his performance was immense! Luton pressure eventually produced a cross from the left and Chorley in trying to head the ball away produced an exceptional own goal (that's if any own goal can be called exceptional!). The lads stuck to the task trying to stem Luton's attacking style, this unfortunately forced Small, McLeod and Platt into defencive roles hence time and again when we had won the ball there were no forward players to pass too hence we ended up camped in our own half. Half time came with very little real attacking having been achieved by the Dons - one solitary strike at goal by Small being the sum total of shots on target!

Rizzo, Smith, Mackie, Smart and Martin had joined our supporters soon after kickoff - it was a pity that at least two of these weren't on the bench as we were going to need some creative play to turn this game around. The second half was very much like the first with lots of pressure by Luton forcing Chorley, Bilong and Baker to up their games to ensure that Luton were denied any chance of improving the score to their advantage. JP was bought on for Crooks and Lewi was pushed back into his best position as left back (why he didn't start there is an absolute mystery). JP made his presence felt with a few crunching tackles and wide runs teasing the Luton defence. Next up was Herve for the ineffective Harding who had failed to stamp his usual authority on the game. Minutes later Kamara came on for a clearly frustrated Izzy who seemed to be making a point of keeping as far away from the management team as possible as he took his place on the bench. These changes refreshed the side and we looked more positive but as at Torquay last week it was too late. The match ended with the Dons beaten by the excellent Luton side who have been invincible all season.

In hindsight it was a huge task before the team - I think the major disappointment for our fans was that we didn't seem able to take the game to Luton but behaved in a negative fashion. Let's hope we show some spirit in the next few games and play to our attacking strengths whilst fielding our best defenders in their natural positions.

Come on you Dons!

Torquay Review

A sunny morning and a chilled pint in the Boot and Laces made for a pleasent start to the day for the travelling Dons fans.

On entering the ground the supporters were in good spirits after the run of 11 games undeafeated coming up agianst a side that were suffering a massive dip in form not having kept a clean sheet this year. The Dons started on the front foot with the wind behind them fielding the same staring 11 as last week. Torquay looked nervous and were on the back foot. After about 10 minutes they regained their composure and started pressing forward with Phillips on the right wing often carving the Dons defence wide open. Twice the ball was cleared off the line by the Dons and once Constantine nestled the ball into the net only for the ref to rule it off side. The Dons managed two meaningful attempts on goal in the first half with Platt's shot deflecting off Izzy for an easy catch by Marriott in Torquay's goal and Chorley heading over the bar from a free kick. Izzy was bought down in the area but as is so often the case his theatrics distracted the referree from giving the correct decision as he assumed it was a dive.

Torquay bought on Kuffour at the start of the second half for Akinfenwa who was suffering a hamstring strain and continued their attacking play putting the Dons on the back foot. The half saw the ball cleared off the Dons line a further 3 times during the half as the Dons rode their luck. Platt managed to scoop the ball over the bar from Harding's free kick but the Dons were not really threatening Torquay's goal. Baker kept the Dons in the game with a couple of good saves but it was seemingly one way traffic. McLeod was booked for apparently diving...he will soon reach 15 yellows this season if he is not careful! Danny bought Smith on for Harding to try to put momentum into the attack. Then the inevitable happened....Garner, on loan from the relegated Rotherham, took a freekick and Abbey end up heading it into the Dons net for his first ever goal for Torquay. Danny bought on Rizzo and Westcarr as a last ditch assualt to try to rescue a point. It looked to have paid off when Edds found himself with the ball at his feet in the dying seconds of the game with the net at his mercy...unfortunately he blasted his shot wide.

It's a long journey back for the travelling supporters and team...it will be hard against Luton next weekend where we will need at least a point. Hopefully we will go on the attack as the tactic played today to settle for a draw has seriously backfired on us.

We all knew it wasn’t going to be easy but boy did we make it difficult for ourselves!

The lads came out in the first half looking for all the world as if they were taking part in a Sunday afternoon kick around after a couple of pints at the local. Players who had been performing well were a shadow of themselves typified by Chorley losing Beckett, which allowed him to easily beat Baker after 5 minutes. The urgency still didn’t seem to transmit itself to the team with attack after attack developing down our left-hand side and never really being adequately dealt with. The 23^rd minute saw a comedy of errors by the referee and linesman as Izzy put the ball into the net with two Oldham defenders standing on the line only for the lineman to flag for offside, the ref had given the goal but reversed it on the linesman’s advice – when will we actually get any officials who understand the basic rules of the game? All too slowly the half came to an end, as the Dons fans desperately wanted Danny to "sort it out" with the lads in the dressing room.

The second half started with renewed vigour from the dons as they pushed forward for the equaliser. Early on Danny changed the left-hand side by replacing Crooks with the attacking Rizzo. As we have seen before Rizzo comes on and doesn’t receive a pass, so it was at first for the nippy winger. Danny was viably annoyed that the ball was still being played straight up the park when Rizzo was obviously on the pitch to provide width. Small seemed to be troubled with an ankle knock and so he was substituted by Westcarr who came on for his debut playing on the right side and soon after Harding was substituted by last seasons playmaking revelation Gary Smith. Suddenly the Dons look so much better with the wide men being bought into the game and crunching tackles flying in as the lads pressed for the winner. Eventually it materialised with Edds pouncing on the Oldham defence hesitancy and lashing a loose ball into the net from close range in the 84^th minute. The shots on goal make interesting reading MK Dons 19 (9 on target), Oldham 4 (2 on target) – if only we could have converted more chances, but unfortunately we didn’t and so we ended up with 1 point instead of 3. In all fairness though, a draw was a fair result.

Bournemouth Review

On a sunny Bank Holiday Monday 297 travelling Dons fans went to the seaside at Bournemouth. Danny Wilson gave Trent McCleahan his full debut as he replaced Shola who was relegated to the bench and "Chopper" Chorley returned from suspension to replace Bilong who had not recovered from a knock sustained at the Swindon game. The fog soon started rolling in from the sea creating a surreal atmosphere at the Fitness First Stadium. The Bournemouth programme proved prophetic when it stated about the Dons on page 14 "Results are good, attendance’s are up and a new stadium is being built. It is a long way from the glories of their predecessors, but as a club, they are now moving in the right direction and will offer Bournemouth a severe test this afternoon" and a hard test they got!

As usual the Dons found themselves playing against 12 men as Mr Mullarkey time and again held his flag to his side when Bournemouth players were blatantly offside, those listening to Radio Solent were treated to the match commentators expressing their disbelief that an assistant referee could miss a player being 3 yards offside when the player was a matter of feet from him. Despite that the lads stuck doggedly to their task matching Bournemouth blow for blow. Disaster struck in the 33 rd minute when Crooks bought down Hayter in the penalty area and the referee pointed straight at the spot. The Dons faithful held their breath....could Matt Baker save the second penalty in a row? The penalty was well struck by O’Conner, low and just inside the right hand post, the opposite side to Matt’s last save. Matt leaped like a cat and diverted the ball away and regained his composure to save the effort from the rebound. The game continued to ebb and flow for the rest of the half with Trent looking extremely useful on his full debut as he joined up fluently with the attack. Half time came and Mr Mullarkey was booed off the pitch by the Dons fans with more than one Dons player attempting to explain the offside rule to him as he had not given a single offside decision for the entire first half.

The second half came and the Dons faithful found to their dismay that the assistant referees hadn’t swapped halves but had remained in station, we all knew that Mr Mullarkey would interpret the offside rule differently this half and he did...time and time again he raised his flag when Dons players were on side. Radio Solent were in utter disbelief at his actions as he was showing incompetence in extreme. It would take a well-worked Dons move to break the 12 man Bournemouth side. This was provided by McLeod on the left wing who sent a high powerful ball towards Platt in the area who nodded it down to the onrushing Edds who powered it into the goal giving the keeper no chance. Our defence held firm with Matty making some more last ditch saves that kept us in the game. Until Mcleod was clear through in stoppage time having beaten the last man, he got into the penalty are only to be bought down from behind with no attempt to play the ball by Browning. The referee hadn’t kept up with the game and looked across to his assistant, the inadequate Mullarkey, who indicated that the foul had been committed OUTSIDE the area. A freekick was awarded and to add insult to injury Browning was shown a yellow card when in reality it should have been a straight red...a fact that even the biased Radio Solent picked up.

The game came to its inevitable conclusion with the Dons the victors despite playing against 12 men. On a personal note I hope the FL look into the multitude of poor decisions given against us this season and identify the cause because I for one have never witnessed such consistently poor officials in my 30 years of regularly going to matches at all levels.

On a positive note though – Matt Baker, what a class keeper and great signing he has proved to be!

Swindon Match Review

It was a strange day as for a change the weather was hot and sunny. We have suffered the cold winter and we were faced today with a warm spring day, which made the cold beer in the Sports Bar flow freely even if the price per pint seriously affects your wallet.

Speculation abounded as to whether either of the two new signings would play and if we could avenge the harsh loss at Swindon earlier in the season when Izzy missed a penalty and Swindon went onto score and win the match.

We didn’t have to wait long for the diminutive Wade Small to out muscle David Duke leaving the Swindon number 11 on the floor and giving himself a clear run at goal. Wade struck with power and easily beat Rhys Evans to put the Dons a goal up. This was Wade’s tenth league goal of the season and his first since early February. The Dons were in the ascendancy but failed to put the game beyond Swindon with some poor finishing. As the half progressed Swindon began to look more threatening and they eventually equalised just before half time thanks to sloppy defending by the Dons and Grant Smith’s head.

Swindon, as expected, started the second in an attacking frame of mind causing the Dons defence all sorts of problems. But the Dons upped the pace after a quarter of an hour and the game became an end to end exchange of flowing football. Crooks was substituted by Kamara and Lewington was pushed back into his accustomed position of left back whilst Malvin played as a left sided midfielder. The next substitution saw a one for one replacement with Shola being replaced by the young West Ham loanee Trent McClenahan. Swindon were pushing hard for the win at this time and the Dons defence were only just dealing with the onslaught. In injury time the referee harshly awarded a penalty after the ball had hit Lewington’s hand in the box. It was ball to hand and he had no chance of avoiding it but the referee gave a penalty. The Dons faithful held their breath as Matt Baker faced Smith. Smith struck the ball low to Matt’s left.......time stood still as Matt sprang and dived full stretch to turn the ball round the post for a corner. Moments later it was all over – a well deserved draw against a team pushing for a play off position. Our unbeaten run has been extended, more points have been earnt and the belief is on the faces of both players and supporters that finally this club has turned the corner and is no longer the whipping boy of the division.

Barnsley Match Report

Strange occurrences turn up thanks to the fixture list and the match against Barnsley proved the point. The last time we played Barnsley was on a hot Saturday afternoon at the start of the season, now that we are coming to the close of the season yet another hot Saturday afternoon greeted the Dons faithful upon their arrival at Barnsley.

At least Deno’s yellow card had been overturned which meant that Danny only had to make one change from last Saturday’s line up, a replacement for our very own captain marvel, Ben Chorley. Danny opted for the experienced Palmer who made his first start since the 5-0 away drubbing by Hartlepool in early January. Like the Hartlepool match Barnsley stewards wouldn’t allow our drums in but as usual the vocal chorus of Dons proved more than a match for the home sides supporters.

From the off it was obvious that neither side had set out their stall to defend as both teams attacked from the start, although Barnsley’s attacks were well contained by an impressive Dons team acting as a well drilled unit. Edds was shooting on sight and some great defensive play from a highly organised defence dealt with most threats until Nardiello "beat" the offside trap and scored at the end of the first half, this was the second time that he had got the ball into the net in the first half but his earlier effort had been ruled out for offside.

A fired up Barnsley came out for the second half with yet another effort by the impressive Nardiello being ruled out as off side. Then the moment many of us have been waiting for....the gentle giant’s first goal for the Dons. Bilong latched onto a free kick from Deno and headed towards goal only for the effort to be blocked and fall at his feet for him to smash into the net in front of our travelling support. To say everyone was happy that the popular centre half had scored his first goal for the club is an understatement!

Wade and Malvin were replaced by Rizzo and JP whose fresh legs added impetus to the attack as Danny urged the team on to try to gain 3 points. Barnsley defended resolutely and held on for the draw to make it 4 games unbeaten away from home in a row.

Well done Danny and Ian for steadying the ship and turning the team around so that we are now a force to be reckoned with.

Port Vale Match Report

It seems only right that this report starts at the end of the match, rather than the normal beginning.

Port Vale substitute Dave Hibbert suffered a head injury that necessitated in him being flown by air ambulance after a clash of heads with Shola in the final minute of the game, the challenge was as fair as fair can be, both players eye on the ball and fully commited in winning the ball. It was nice to see Dons Fans on their feet acknowledging the Vale substitute as he left the field.

The game did not live up to what we have been used to since Danny took over, although our home unbeaten streak is now at ten league games and unbeaten in any of our last seven league games, the game was very slow starting. The Dons had to make one change since Izale has two games off and his replacement Malvin Kamara was showing signs of not having played in a while and he was replaced in the second half by JP.

Just when we thought we weren't going to see a goal all afternoon two came along inside three minutes, Vales goal came after a freekick was awarded and we'd fallen asleep, having acres of space Matthews struck the ball inside Bakers right-hand post with only Wade reacting to the fact that they had taken the freekick, within the blink of an eye sub Rizzo crossed the ball for Platty to power home a bullet header.

A block in the south stand were screaming for the ball to be given to Nicky everytime we came forward, its why Danny brought him on, and ironic cheers rang out when the lads finally realised Nicky was the key to unpick the Vale lock and used our left flank.

The MK Dons SA would like to wish Dave Hibbert a speedy recovery and hope is home very soon with his family.On days like this the result just doesn't seem so important.

8/3/05

BERKS AND BUCKS CUP

Our only chance of winning a cup this year is in the Berks & Bucks Senior Cup. We will face Wycombe Wanderers in the semi-final at the National Hockey Stadium on Tuesday, 15^th March (7.30pm kick-off). Extra-time will be played if necessary, and if the scores are still level after 120 minutes a replay will take place at Wycombe, with extra-time and penalties if required.

South Stand Matchday prices are £5 for adults and £2 for children. Come and cheer the lads onto glory against local league opposition for what is bound to be a hotly contested match.

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7/03/05

MK Dons v Stockport

Dean Lewington and Gareth Edds scored the goals that have given our hopes of survival a great boost.

Lewi fired us ahead on 34 minutes to put us 1-0 up by half time.

In the second half and 59th minute of the game, Edds put us 2-0 ahead with his first goal for the club.

In the 73rd minute, Stockport's Keith Briggs retaliated with a controversial goal which some thought had been disallowed by the referee as 2 players were laying injured in the penalty area with head injuries. In the NHS bar afterwards, the result on Sky sports came through at 2-0 with one Dons' supporter being very disappointed because he had placed a bet on the Dons to win 2-1.

In the 78th minute of the game, County’s 'John Hardiker' saw the red card for fouling Lewington and earning himself a second yellow bringing any hopes of a Stockport equaliser to a quick end.

Despite the 2-0 result on the 'Final Score' teleprinter, the official result came in at 2-1, so our Dons' supporter had won his bet after all! So congratulations to him.

Fan News

Welcome back to Graham Woollard on the East Stand - The Stockport game was his first game after having been in Milton Keynes General for a serious operation which we are all pleased to hear was a success. He is replaced in Milton Keynes General by John Samuel – get well soon John!

New chant from the East Stand.

'The Dons are staying up and you had better believe us!

Official attendance = 4,146

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Match Preview

This Saturday sees us play bottom of the table Stockport County at the NHS and Danny and the lads hope to make our unbeaten run extended to six games. The mood in the camp is high despite the last three games only being drawn , as we know decisions have gone against us and cost us six points, which would have meant we were out of the dreaded relegation zone.

The only slight doubt from last weeks game is due Wade Small's ankle injury which saw him stretchered off and any of you there last week would have feared the worst, so it would be a boost to see him available to take his place in the team.

Alex Tapp and Gary Smith are still long term absentees and Paul Mitchell would have been playing his last game on loan from Wigan but for his knee, the Cowshed want us "too sign him up" but we will have to wait and see what happens.

Danny will not under estimate County, they turned us over at Edgeley Park in a bruising encounter just before Christmas and they've fought hard for seven points in February with a win at the end of the month over high flying Hartlepool.

With us winning and other results going our way on Saturday we could be out of the drop zone.

Sing Your Hearts Out and Come on You Dons

25/02/2005

Wrexham v MK Dons

The Dons travel to Wales on Saturday to take on fellow relegation strugglers Wrexham. Both team are dangerously lingering in the relegation positions and will battle hard for the three points.

The Dons squad is still on a high after recent performances and are unbeaten in their last four while Wrexham have gone eight games without a win and have failed to win at home in the league this year. A win for Danny Wilson's Dons could see them bounce out of the relegation zone depending of other results.

The Dons will be without influential midfielders Paul Mitchell & Gary Smith for the clash, while Malvin Kamara could be fit despite an injury during the recent reserve win against Woking. Former Wrexham keeper, Matt Baker, is set to keep his place in goal for his return to the Racecourse Ground after his recent good performances. He has only let in two goals in the past four games. There should be another conceded goal on that statistic, but we all know the Hull City goal was miles off side so I am not counting that one!

23/02/2005

Referee was a Joke.....

Absolute diabolical refereeing ruined a very determined effort by the Dons last night.

The Dons showed last night that in no way should they be anywhere near the bottom of the table, by keeping promotion chasers Hull City at bay. The Dons could have won the game on a couple of occasions with just the slightest of touches, but just missed out.

We took the lead in the second half after plenty of pressure on the Hull back four. It was a well deserved goal, crossed in by Izale which Wade struck and the loose ball fell to Lewington to side foot into the net. From here we looked like scoring more but, as I said before each time they were just out of reach.

We did slacken off the pressure in the last minutes of the game, but only just a bit. This however gave Hull a small amount of space to come forward. What happened next was the worst refereeing I have ever seen. Wade was clearly fouled near our area, which the offending Hull player acknowledged by starting walk away, but the ref blew for a throw-in to Hull. Then after a few passes the ball was crossed to a couple of Hull forwards that were so far offside it was untrue. But the ref and the linesman gave the goal.

This was not the only bad refereeing in the game. The Ref and lino’s had a shocking game with both sides. And clearly did not know what they were doing.

Then to top it all, as the ref came off the pitch he was smiling at the crowed as they booed him off, and allegedly put his finger to his lips to hush the crowed and said a few very derogatory remarks about MK to those standing around him. I hope that the Football club will be making a formal complaint about this behaviour as this was clearly well out of order!

A very upset Dons Fan.

A last minute goal from Platt on Saturday gave the Dons a crucial 3 points to follow on from our win away to Bradford earlier in the week.

The Dons have not had back-to-back league wins since September last year when we beat Colchester and then Hartlepool. In fact, this is only our second back-to-back league win in 22 months.

The conditions for the game on Saturday were not the best, with the wind blowing a gale through the NHS. Huddersfield were playing with the wind in the first half and made the most of it when they scored from a free kick on the edge of the box. The ball was floated over the top of our defence and towards goal where a totally unmarked Booth ran onto the ball to head it home for the vistors. This was pretty much against the play, as I thought that we were putting a fair amount of pressure on Huddersfield prior to conceding the first goal.

However our heads didn’t drop and our continued pressure paid off when Izale scored from Ben Harding’s parried shot 3 minutes later.

Ben Harding had a glorious opportunity to go 2-1 up just before half time when he was clear on goal after Izale had slipped the ball through to him, only his blasted it wide of the goal when Rachubka was clearly beaten. This however did not worry me too much as we were going to be playing with the wind and have the sun on our backs for the second half. Surely there were many goals to come I thought.

Unfortunately the second half was a more scrappy affair. It did look promising immediately after the restart however, with Platt just heading wide and then taking an eternity to shoot when he was clear on goal with just the keeper to beat, but the ball was stolen from him just as he went to shoot. But then after this it was Huddersfield that pressed more for the winner, with The Dons chasing the ball rather than playing the sweet passing game we know they can play. Kamara came on in the second half for Wade Small, but in my mind he didn’t really get into the game. He still looked slow and not very willing to get back and help out when needed.

To be honest I was starting to think that a point from this game was going to be the best we could hope for, as Huddersfield were pushing more and more for the win. I thought they had done it on about 80 minutes when Huddersfield scored from close range only for it to be ruled out for a very tight offside. It makes a change for a right decision to go our way, well done the assistant referee!

Then just when you were thinking what a single point would do for our bottom of the table struggle, Kamara comes good and makes a great run down the wing to cross the ball into the box, and then Platt scores after a bit of a scramble in the area!

And there it was, our first back-to-back league win since September, won during two minutes of added time. How many times have we been on the receiving end of bad decisions or loosing to late goals. Has our luck changed? Well we had it with us on Saturday, and besides I am a firm believer that we make our own luck and The Dons are certainly showing their determination to get back up the table.

The Dons play host to 14^th placed Huddersfield tomorrow in Milton Keynes. The morale in the Dons camp is very high after the midweek win against Bradford; Danny Wilson will be looking for much the same against Peter Jackson’s Terriers. Again we are in a situation where the Dons could win their first back to back league games for 22 months.

The Dons may still be without influential midfielder Gary Smith and right back Gareth Edds; both have not fully recovered from recent injuries. Mark Williams should be available after his recent groin operation but has not played a match this year. Willo was an unused substitute during Northern Ireland’s defeat in midweek to Canada. Ben Chorley will now be available for the match tomorrow. Chopper picked up his 10^th yellow card last Saturday, which would have meant a two-match ban, however, the referee has looked at the game, at the request of Chorley, and decided to reverse the decision. Benjamin Francis Chorley, as he is known at the FA, is still one yellow card away from an auotmatcic two-match ban.

Sheffield United’s Luke Beckett, who is currently on loan at Huddersfield, may play his last match for the terriers. Beckett has scored five goals in the past four games and Jackson is frantically trying to negotiate an extension to his loan. Jackson has a selection problems ahead of the match, central defensive pairing of Efe Sodje, suspension, and Steve Yates, injury, look set to miss the match. Town have one of the league’s top three scorers in the shape of Pawel Abbott. A Polish under-21 striker he has scored 18 League goals this season, but was used as a substitute for their last match against league leaders Luton Town.

Huddersfield will be looking for their away win in five games while the Dons will want to continue their impressive home form of no defeats in six games.

The Dons travel to Valley Parade in the League 1 re-arranged fixture this evening. The Dons were due to meet Bradford on the 8^th of January but due to their commitment in the FA Cup 3^rd round it had to be changed.

Danny Wilson’s side will be looking to end the 10 match away run without a win. This will be a tough task, as we will be missing some key players. Gary Smith did not train with the Dons on Monday after picking up an injury at Brentford and could miss out; David Martin will be doing his country proud playing for the under 19’s on Wednesday and Gareth Edds will not face his former club as he has still not fully recovered from his injury that he picked up during the Sheffield Wednesday game. Matt Baker, Malvin Kamara & Shoyla Oyedele could be the Dons to replace the injured three. Mark Williams has been training with the first team but is not match fit. With Bradford being Chopper’s last match before a two-match suspension, there is not much time to get him fit before the Huddersfield match at home on Saturday.

This could be Paul Mitchell’s last match for the Dons unless Wigan agrees to extend his loan period for the second time. Mitchell was due to return to Wigan on the 9^th of January but the deal was extended for a further month.

The Bantams will be without former Don Darren Holloway, who is still recovering from a calf strain, as they try and push for the play-offs. Michael Symes will not be risked after his recent injury as it is considered too soon for a come back. Bradford have drawn their last 4 league games and have only managed 1 win this year. If they want to maintain their promotion hope they desperately want to beat the Dons as matches against fellow promotion hopefuls Luton & Sheffield Wednesday follow.

A win for the Dons tonight could see them jump to fourth from bottom. Despite all out injuries there is one bit of good news; Dele Adebola is no longer on loan to Bradford! Adebola scored the last minute winner at the National Hockey Stadium last time these two sides met in early October.

It’s a funny world. At last we have a league team in Milton Keynes to supplement the numerous non-league teams in our fair “City” and what happens? The league club plays 5 non-league clubs in half a year! Tuesday night afforded us a visit to Maidenhead United FC’s York Road ground whilst the other MUFC were playing at Highbury which acted as the additional draw into the club bar along with the customary pint!

The pitch had seen better days, although there were strips of green at the edges and in the box, the rest was either mud or sand on top of mud due, we were informed by the excellent programme, to a compaction problem. There was also a definite slope from one end to the other and an uneven surface that would add to the unpredictable nature of the balls bounce. This was most certainly a pitch that would give any home side a distinct advantage.

The team was announced: Baker, Oyedele, Ntimban-Zeh, Koo-Boothe, Crooks, Kamara, Herve, McKoy, Puncheon, Smart, and Mackie. Certainly a strong side with Kamara and Koo-Boothe continuing their respective rehabilitation from injury.

The Dons were on top for much of the first half, with Kamara and Shola linking up well on the right side. Maidenhead’s excellent goalkeeper verbally encouraged his team forward and launched searching balls forward deep into the Don’s half. Unfortunately the linesman seemed not to notice that Jamie Mackie was on side when he scored on 15 minutes and the assistant raised his flag to indicate an off side decision, much to the dismay of the small travelling Don’s contingent.

Soon afterward, Malvin, on one of his probing runs down the wing, produced a good cross from the right, and Mackie was pushed to the ground as he attempted to connect. There was no doubting that Allan Smart would take the spot kick, which was struck low down inside the far post.

After the break Maidenhead raised their game and piled on the pressure to try to get an equaliser. Matt Baker having to make some excellent saves to keep them at bay. Nathan was now marshalling the defence and ensuring that they acted as a cohesive unit snuffing out the pressure that was piling on. The Don’s were counter attacking when the opportunity arose and Nick McKoy should have finished the game off after an excellent run into the Maidenhead box. Inevitably the game ground to a halt in the muddy battlefield that was midfield and the Don’s finished the game as victors. All credit must be given to Maidenhead whose tactics played to their strengths and the conditions. Not a very entertaining game but an excellent work out to get our fringe players and returning players match fit.

The Mk Dons proved they have great “Bouncebackability” today as they came back twice to earn a well deserved point against a team on very good form.

The atmosphere inside the NHS today was fantastic with both sets of fans singing loud and proud for the entire game. You have to hand it to the Wednesday Fans, they show great support for their team and the noise was superb. Mind you I was a bit worried about our temporary stands when they were doing their “Bouncing” chant!

The game itself was great to watch, with both sides contesting well for the three points. I thought that we didn’t quite click in the first half though and Wednesday took full advantage of a terrible mistake by David Martin when his indecisiveness with clearing a back pass from Chorley cost us the first goal. Sometimes a simple hoof out to touch really is the best plan of action rather than trying to be too clever. Martin did however redeem himself several times during the match with some excellent saves.

It was Michel Pensee-Bilong’s Home debut today and he had quite a good game, making his large frame count when bustling the Owls forwards off the ball. But I think his ball distribution leaves a bit to be desired though, at times he looked quite clumsy. Although he does look a very intimidating player to go up against and I am sure he will soon fit in well with Chorley at the back.

The Dons went in at half time a goal down and although Wednesday had the best of the half, we managed to hold off their best efforts to increase the lead.

The second half showed that the fighting spirit in our team is getting better and better. We got the equaliser within 15 minutes after chipping away at their defence with several attacks. A great ball over the top for Wade Small to run onto bounced back off the keeper into the path of Clive Platt to calmly side foot it into the open goal. This gave the home crowed plenty to cheer about as the tune of “Eat my Goal” was blasted around the stadium!

Unfortunately our elation didn’t last long and a lapse in defence saw a cross ball deflect off Chorley into his own net only minutes later. But the lad’s heads didn’t drop and we kept on battling for an equaliser.

Danny Wilson made three very important substitutions during the second half. Palmer was on for Edds very early in the second half, and it was Palmer that made several crucial tackles to keep us in the game. Jason Puncheon came on for Nicky Rizzo and once again Jason was full of running and made a nuisance of himself down the left. But Danny’s most inspired substitution came when he brought on Izale McLeod for ‘Birthday Boy’ Gary Smith with just 15 minutes to play. At first I was a bit worried that Izzy may spend most of the remaining 15 minutes on his backside, but apart from going down once to wry cheer from the home crowed, he actually stayed on his feet and scored an absolutely tremendous solo effort of a goal to equalise with just 5 minutes remaining. Chants of “Your not Bouncing any more” were aimed in the direction of the visiting fans from the home support!

A very enjoyable game to watch, and although I am more than happy to get a point from the team in fourth place, I feel that, if not for a moment of madness, we may well have snatched all three points!

27/01/2005

MK Dons Reserves 4-0 Stevenage Borough Reserves

The Dons convincingly beat Stevenage 4-0 on a blistering cold night in MK. Two goals a piece from Jamie Mackie and make shift striker Jason Puncheon were enough to see off the Borough.

The Dons lined up with Bevan in goal with Palmer & Koo-Boothe in central defence. The full back roles went to Leon Crooks and captain for the night Ntimban-Zeh. Herve, Kamara, Hornuss & Luke Wildy all played in midfield with Mackie and Puncheon in attack.

The Dons looked comfortable throughout the game with Bevan hardly being troubled, even if he did seem to have McLeod’s boots on! I only counted 4 slips while clearing the ball.

Jamie Mackie gave the Dons the lead in the first half after good work in midfield. A through ball found its way to Mackie for him to score with only the keeper to beat.

In the second half Malvin Kamara moved the right back position after Steve Palmer took himself off. He did not really have much to do in terms of defending so spent time attacking. Ntimban-Zeh and Koo-Boothe took up the central defensive roles and seemed to make a good partnership.

Jason Puncheon’s first goal was a very well taken free kick that even Roberto Carlos would have been proud of. His left foot bender gave the Stevenage keeper no chance.

There were lots of positives that Danny Wilson and his management team can take from the game, Bevan, Kamara & Koo-Boothe all came through the match without any sort of reaction to their recent injuries. Jason Puncheon showed just how versatile he can be for the squad with a strong performance upfront. Jamie Mackie has staked a place for the squad with a good game and two goals. Also worth a mention is Luke Wildy who looked very comfortable on the ball and helped run the midfield, this must have been due to all the experience he gained while on loan in Iceland.

24/01/2005

"Oh i don't like to be beside the seaside!"....

This was one of the games we all wanted to be at if we're honest, a nice trip to the Las Vegas of the UK and when did we get it? JANUARY!!! nevertheless a couple of hundred braved Blackpool in the winter on what could be dubbed 'Mission how come we didn't win?"

After the midweek incident with a car and a couple of players Danny was unfortunately forced to shuffle the pack and change a winning side, which no manager likes to do and it seemed a shame for Shola who most of us thought had his best game against Colchester but it gave DW the chance to play our new signing Bilong, who got a fantastic reception from the travelling Dons fans. The only other change was McLeod in for Small.

We were hosted in what could only be described as a building site version of the West Stand did anyone think to bring their bucket and spade to the game? The atmosphere in the ground, if you could call it an atmosphere was weird, they were more nervous than us as the memory of a 3-1 defeat at the NHS was burning in the consciousness and the home fans were silent. With us in our temporary stand left isolated on our own miles from any home supporters and a gaping gap behind the end to our left we were devoid of any meaningful banter, which was a shame because we sing, like we always do non stop no matter what the result. I didn't here much from a set of supporters who were as desperate for three points as we were.

We had so much possession, more shots on goal more corners, five in less than three minutes in the second half but they won the game and it was a well taken goal a ball crossed in from the right cleared Bilong and Chorley in the middle and dropped over Edds and Edwards flashed a boot and it scorched past Martin into the top corner.Our new centre back partnership did look solid with Bilong winning everything in the air and with pace that must challenge even Izale in a 100 metre dash.

We just didn't have the final thrust to finish off the industrious efforts of Smith, Rizzo and Harding. Platt worked tirelessly and when Wade came on for Izale with around twenty minutes to go we thought we were going to get atleast a point which we would have thoroughly deserved and no Blackpool fan in their right mind would have denied us. But within a few minutes of coming on Wade got a crack on the back of the head, the last thing he needed.

Another away game another defeat you might think, but no, this was a different Dons side one that deserved a win, a much better performance that shows there IS light at the end of this very long dark tunnel we have been travelling in, it cant be too long until we get the reward of three away points again i just hope i'm there to see it.

Looking forward to seeing the Drummer Boys on TV soon, this website will bring you full details very shortly, just remember boys don't look at the camera and be yourselves.

Report: Franco Volpe

16/01/2005

"Platt" Will Do Nicely.........

Clive Platt has added an extra dimension to our game, which made all the difference on Saturday as we comfortably beat Colchester 2-0.

Not taking anything away from the rest of the team, who all had a very good game yesterday, but Platt was able to get onto almost every high ball sent up to him and then control the play or feed the ball on to another player such as the superb Wade Small, who in my mind is heading towards Player of the Year.

The combination of Platt and Small was a huge success and credit has to be given to Danny Wilson for another good signing for the Dons.

Ben Harding came back into the side after 4 months out with a knee injury and played like he had never been out of the first team. He was up with the pace and troubled the 'U's back four when ever he got the ball. It was Ben's fantastic strike on the turn which gave us the lead on 2 minutes, that gave the Don's Faithful plenty to cheer about.

From that point in we looked like scoring with every attack. Platt almost scored on his debut when Harding caused more trouble for Colchester and the ball fell to Platt, who struck it sweetly only for it to crash off the bar. Rizzo came close to increasing the lead shortly after. But it was Platt was once again who nodded on a great through ball to Wade Small to run onto and blast it past the 'U's keeper into the top right hand corner of the goal, 2-0 to the Dons! We continued to threaten score right up to the half time whistle.

We started the second half in the same fashion with Gary Smith hitting the bar once again seconds after the restart. How many times have we hit the bar recently?

David Martin made a couple of very good saves during the match, which gave our back four all the confidence they needed to keep it tight at the back. They soaked up any pressure that Colchester tried to put in them and never really looked in any trouble. Ben Chorley is becoming a rock at the back and in my opinion should wear the Captains armband every week.

More attempts on goal from Smith and Rizzo during the second half saw us push back the visitors and keep their attacks to a minimum.

Wade Small was replaced by Izale McLeod with about ten minutes to play. Unfortunately Izzy was a bit off the pace and didn't make much of an impression on the game.

With the game won Danny Wilson decided to make a defensive substitution and Ben Harding was replaced Steve Palmer to defend our two goal lead. Rizzo was also replaced shortly after with Jason Puncheon who came on full of running and looks like he is ready to make much more of a contribution to the first team. In the last few minutes of the game the dons were passing the ball around well to shouts of "ole" from the fans. Puncheon was showboating a bit as well with a few back heals and step over trickery!

It was refreshing to see the Dons keep onto the ball and play the game out and kill off any chance Colchester may have of making a late upset by taking the ball into the corners to play down the clock.

A great performance. Come on you Dons!

Two Match Reports For The Price Of One......

Fans View Number One.

I am thinking of asking Pete to change our name again this time to Jeckyll and Hyde FC as our home form and away form are vastly different characters it borders on schizophrenic.

We showed both our characters in this encounter inside 90 mins. The journey to and from the "Frozen North" was incident free, unlike this game and the brave or should that be crazy "91" could really not have expected too much after our drums were confiscated on arrival "because our chairman has had complaints from the home fans that its too noisy" we saw what they meant by the end of the game, but that follows.

The opening exchanges were fairly even, we could see why they had the best home record in the division they knocked the ball around and we were chasing floodlit shadows for most of the first 20 mins without them really threatening to score (how fooled were we of what was to come) the change in atmosphere came after Chorley clearly allowed the ball to run out of play after a 'pools player had touched it last , but in the lino's mind (if he had one) it was a corner, the next few minutes were total pressure, they stepped up a gear and unfortunately Sweeney was allowed unmarked, as we pushed up calling for offside, to go through on Baker and sad as it is too say a beautiful lob after the stranded keeper flew into the net.

Crazy as it sounds we should have gone into the break in the lead with smart first hitting the bar from a free kick and on another occasion having beat the keeper with a fierce drive only to find a defender behind him on the line to slice it high up over his own crossbar and having another shot fly wide after a slick passing move involving four players.

During the half time break Hartlepool contradicted the term "fast-food" that left several of our vast away following still queuing for what can be loosely term as food as some of it clearly wasn't edible, our opponents would clearly be in the Premier League for bad service and quality of their catering, and did anyone manage to eat a whole "burger"? I saw quite a few throw away what was sold to them in total disgust.

Well the second half started in very ominous fashion, we would have expected us to shut up shop and keep the score down to the one goal in the first ten minutes but we spent the first four inside our own penalty area and only got out to restart the game after conceding, after this we never recovered a third followed a quarter of an hour later again from Boyd who was a handful all game, the fourth came in the form a penalty that was saved by Baker but alas we'd given up and nobody reacted from ourside and Porter was given the chance to redeem his miss, the fifth goal in added time gave us our worst scoreline since conceding five at Upton Park towards the end of last season.

All in all at half time we never saw this coming, but come it did, we had no goal keeper on the bench presumably to give us more outfield options, so, why with Smith and Tapp on the bench did we only play two subs and one of those being Shola ? This tactic has left quite a few us in total disbelief. Surely Gary and Alex would have given us more options as the team selection would have implied? Remember Alex coming on at Stockport and scoring to make it 2-1? we were back in that game and fighting. But in this game we lay down and rolled over and had no response to a side we had beaten, scoring four goals ourselves not so long ago.

It was good to see Malvin resume action after his layoff, and he was sporting a new haircut which should reduce the wind resistance as he flies down the wing in the coming weeks.

This sort of performance, spirit and fight will take us down, its clear we are not equipped for this struggle with all of these players, yet another week goes by and we're still in the mix, due to othersides failing to win themselves. How long can we rely on others misfortunes?

Additions are needed and needed quick in all departments but that's easy for me to say i don't have to find them, persuade them to come here or heaven forbid pay for them from my own pocket (shudders at the thought). That's because im not the manager or the chairman i just a guy who got up out of bed on a cold windy Bank Holiday Monday, drove 475 miles and paid over 60 quid for the privilege (with offspring). What the hell do i know?

We got the drums back as we left and knew straight away, if we had been allowed to bang them we'd have woken the dead, sorry home fans but you were 5-0 up and it was like a morgue, we'll save our drums for a game with some atmosphere.

I'll be going to Blackpool away with all the usual suspects in couple of weeks, but will i have the same questions and doubts to haunt me on the journey home again with, and will it be with Dr Jeckyll or Mr Hyde ?

Fans View Number Two.

Our trip to Hartlepool got off to a good start when we easily found “the pub by the three masted schooner” and supped a few northern pints in the congenial company of Hartlepool supporters who boasted that they were out for revenge after the drubbing they’d endured at our place. Some actually acknowledged that although their home form was good “on paper” they had been extremely lucky and were worried about us doing the double over them.

We set off to the stadium in high spirits hopeful of at least a draw but with the dream of an away win. Upon reaching the ground we were greeted with our first shock – our drums were “removed” from the lads because (and I quote the steward) “our chairman has told us to remove all drums etc from away supporters as our supporters don’t make much noise and it gives an unfair advantage to you”. We then entered and bought the usual pies etc from what can only be described as a steam filled room where one poor lass struggled bravely to see from one end of the small room to the other.

The Dons started brightly with Small and Smart combining to produce an excellent clearance off the line by the ‘pool number 6, Chris Westwood. The Dons piled the pressure on Hartlepool without avail with Hartlepool producing some dangerous breaks to relieve the pressure. On one of these breaks the Dons defence failed to track their men allowing Sweeney (who had received a Red card at the NHS for his headbutt on Izzy) to deliver a measured lob over the onrushing Baker into the net. The Dons continued to pile pressure on with Smart being extremely unlucky not to level the score when his free kick struck the underside of the bar and bounced the wrong side of the line allowing Hartlepool to clear the ball.

Half time came and the Dons faithful were positive that we could still at least claw a draw out of the game with Kamara, Smith and Tapp all as options on the bench. The lads came out and virtually straight away gave away another goal. Not to worry, we had seen the lads claw back a draw at Chesterfield earlier in the season from being 2 nil down. Then a few minutes later the third goal went in and almost immediately you could see heads going down. Chorley and Smart to their credit tried to verbally encourage the lads, shouting, cajoling and exulting them but to no avail. Kamara was bought on for Izzy who had seemed strangely absent all afternoon. Shola then replaced Rizzo and was pushed into right midfield. Three became four with a very dodgy penalty that Baker saved but our defence were caught flat footed as the penalty taker reacted fastest of all to put the ball into the back of the net. Then to add insult to injury the fifth was well-struck giving Baker no chance in injury time.

We went back to the Jackson pub scratching our heads with Hartlepool fans saying to us that we hadn’t played that bad, which in truth we hadn’t, well not five clear goals ‘bad’ that’s for sure! After a warm up in the pub we bade the North East folk a fond good bye. They had been hospitable to us and it certainly seemed that our team had been to them!

MK DONS 3 - BLACKPOOL 1

A great performance from the MK Dons today! They waved goodbye to the last game of 2004 with a well deserved win.

That's the last three Home games without defeat, starting with a draw to Posh, a good win against Wrexham and now today's win over visitors Blackpool. Looks like our Home form is on the up!

It was great to see plenty of Dons fans today during the Christmas Holidays. I am sure that our Home form has plenty to do with the great vocal support we are building at the NHS.

We started very well today, with Wade Small back from suspension we looked far more positive going forward. Within minutes of the whistle, he lifted a superb ball over the heads of the oncoming Blackpool defenders, straight into the path of Allan Smart who took the ball in his stride but his shot was skied over the bar after a deflection from the keeper.

We had the majority of the possession through the first half and threatened to score on several occasions. Shots from Small, Mitchell and Edds before another great passing move by the Dons finished with Wade Small feeding the ball through to Izale who calmly side footed his shot round the diving Blackpool keeper to give us the goal lead which we thoroughly deserved.

The Dons also looked far more solid at the back today. The combination of Palmer and Chorley working very well. A lot of the play started from the back with the Dons using the ball well passing it around to the delight of the Home crowed.

Some very dubious decisions from the referee in the first half irritated the Home fans, as he failed to award a penalty decision when Smart was floored in the box by the visitor’s keeper. And several bad decisions to stop play when we had clear advantage on goal did not go down well.

The second half started with Blackpool stating their intent very early on when they tested our new keeper a couple of times, but Baker did very well on each occasion.

The Dons weathered this small amount of pressure and were soon back attacking the Seasiders goal. Danze could have put us further ahead when Smart played an exquisite pass into the path of Danze but his first time shot was straight into the keeper’s arms.

Gary Smith came on for Danze moments later and he started to cause trouble for the Seasiders straight away. Together with shots from Mitchell and Small, Smith had a great effort saved by the visitor’s keeper after good work by Izale down the wing. It was a shot from Smith that led to a corner from which the ball came out to Rizzo who crossed it back in for Palmer to head home to make the score 2-0. Yes a goal from Stevie Palmer, and I don't think he even had to jump for it either!

But then the referee struck again with another bad decision when he awarded a penalty to Blackpool when their number eight fell to his knees in our area. To be far to the Blackpool player he even went over to the lines to say that he had fallen over, but the referee's decision was final. The penalty was converted and the lead was reduced to just one goal.

But almost immediately the Dons came back with the best answer possible to the dodgy refereeing, when Allan Smart was gifted the ball by one of Blackpool's back four. He ran at goal and kept his head to calmly pass the ball past the keeper to make the score 3-1 to the Dons.

The Dons continued to keep possession of the ball pretty much until the final whistle, once again to the delight of the Home crowd who cheered every pass.

A great display by the Dons. Let’s hope it can continue into the New Year!

STOCKPORT 3 - MK DONS 1

With the euphoria of the win against Wrexham last week, many Dons fans got carried away with the thought of an easy victory over bottom place Stockport. Well, we soon came back down to earth with a jolt!

Earlier in the week I made the mistake of referring to our new manager as Danny Williams. Well perhaps I wasn’t too far off the mark, as David Martin appeared to be wearing Mr William’s Boxing gloves rather than his goal keeping gloves for the first goal against The Hatters on Saturday!

It was a terrible start for the Dons which I don’t think they recovered from. To be fair, after the first goal we were doing enough to keep the Hatters at bay and we put plenty of pressure on their back four with a succession of corners but we were unable to make them count. But then a second mistake by Martin when he passed the ball to an imaginary friend within his area, sealed our fate and from then we were just chasing the game with no real threat on the Stockport goal.

With Wade Small out with suspension and Kamara still out with injury, we were lacking the usual pace up front. Our attacking threat was reduced to an out of form Izale and the slow pace of Alan Smart. I think Danny Wilson’s game plan was a defensive one. To play for a draw with the hope that we might nick something towards the end of the game. But that plan was shot to pieces with the Hatters two goal cushion.

The introduction of Jamie Mackie and Alex Tapp did make a difference in the second half. The ubiquitous Mackie using his pace to unsettle the Stockport back four. And Alex Tapp providing a more attacking addition to the midfield. It was Alex Tapp who scored with just 13 minutes to go with a well taken shot after running at the Stockport defense. We then had a 10 minute spell when we went up a gear and I actually thought we may just get an equalizer. But another slip from Izale gifted the ball to Stockport who shot from range and beat Martin at his near post. When is Izale going to get a pair of boots with studs on them?

A performance best forgotten in my opinion. Back to the drawing board Danny, and time to start looking for a couple of outfield players to sure things up!

The MK Dons travel to Stockport this weekend for Danny Wilson’s first away match. Danny should have flying winger Malvin Kamara back who missed the league win at Wrexham due to injury. The Dons will be without in form striker Wade Small who starts a two-match suspension after being reported to the FA by the referee after the away game at Hull. Izale Mcleod should start in attack with Allan Smart.

Mark Williams should be available after a recent injury in the Dons reserves in Northampton. The Dons captain was taken off after a clash of heads left him dazed but made has been training and ready to be called if needed. Ben Harding also came through the same match but may not be risked. David Martin should continue in goal with veteran Paul Heald on the bench. Paul Mitchell, who enters his second game of the one-month loan deal told the mkdons.com ‘I'm surprised to see where MK Dons are in the league on that performance’ he also said ‘By the looks of it, there is a lot to come from this side’ Mitchell should start in midfield with either Smith or Tapp. There are no other major injury worries for the Dons boss ahead of the game.

Stockport, who missed out on a place in the FA Cup 3^rd round in midweek after a defeat against Swansea City, has failed to win a league game since mid October. The Hatters should not be underestimated as they are due a win. They will be a difficult team to beat. They could also have a manager in place for the game on Saturday. Former Barnsley and Stoke City manager Gudjon Thordarson could be the man who replaces Sammy McIlroy.

The Dons last meeting at Edgley Park ended in a 2-1 victory just over 3 years ago. I am sure Danny Wilson would be more then happy with a similar score line.

Andy Penn, who interestingly has not shown a red card in 10 games this season but averages 4 yellow’s per game, will be the referee for the match. Dons fans may remember him for booking Adam Nowland in the game away at Ipswich last season for no apparent reason.

MK Dons 3 - Wrexham 0

Before I start I would to say “We’ve got Danny Wilson, we’ve got Danny Wilson, lalala la lalala la”.

what a difference a few days can make. Was that really the same team that played against Peterborough? I know we had a new addition in the starting line-up in the shape of Wigan’s Paul Mitchell but, was he responsible for the whole team performing so well? Although he played fantastic on his debut, credit has to go to Mr Winkleman’s choice for manager Danny Wilson.

Before the game the Wrexham supporters trust were presented with a signed Dons shirt by chairman Pete Winkleman so they could raffle it off to help raise funds to help buy their club. The Wrexham fans were also given a cheer and a round of applause from all the home supporters when the announcer welcomed them.

The game kicked off and there was lots of expectation. With only one minute forty seconds gone on the new scoreboard Danny Wilson was on his feet yelling instruction to his team. It was not that different to the team that started on Tuesday. Martin stayed in goals with Palmer and in-form Ben Chorley in the central defensive roles. Edds and Lewington played as full backs. The midfield was Mitchell and Smith. Wade Small and Nicky Rizzo operated on the flanks. Top scorer Izale McLeod started for the first time in two games with Allan Smart. Mark Williams, Alex Tapp and Shoyla Oyedele all made the bench.

One of the most noticeable changes in the play was that the Dons seemed to keep their shape at all times. Whether they were defending or attacking they stuck to the 4-4-2 formation. I have noticed in the past that either full back would get drawn into the centre for some reason. This seemed to stop today. When Wrexham finally did manage to get through the midfield they came up against a defensive 4 that stood tall and done their jobs fantastically. On the rare occasions they got past them they then had to content with England under-19 keeper David Martin. It is worth noting that Martin kept a clean sheet for the game. He made a couple of important saves and deserves credit too.

Even though Wrexham were still on a high after coming from behind in midweek and winning against Stockport they found it difficult to cope with the Dons going forward. Although we started with Rizzo and Small out wide, Izzy and Small would swap positions and either winger would swap flanks. This provided plenty of attacking options. Allan Smart had one of his best games of the season, he held the ball up, flicked it on for players and generally done everything expected of him. Not wanting to be left out, both full backs took every opportunity to push forward. At one point in the second half Lewington nearly ran the whole length of the pitch with the ball, if only other players could have kept up with him or he had a right foot to take a shot himself. He just seemed to run out of steam and Wrexham were able to clear.

The Dons took the lead early in the first half after good run and left foot shot from Nicky Rizzo. We could have gone two up not long after. Gary Smith had a shot that went just over the bar.

Wrexham came out early for the second half. Mr Wilson must have had plenty to say as the Dons came out two minutes later. What ever he said must have done the trick as the second half continued like the first with loads of attacks and exceptional midfield play from the Dons. We went two up with a goal from Wade Small, who earlier had received his MK Dons Supporters Association player of the month award for November. He could and should have had a second not long after but the linesman ruled him offside. Having seen it, I would say that Wrexham were very lucky, the assistant ref was wrong with that decision.

After the second goal Danny Wilson took Smith off and blocked up the midfield with Alex Tapp. Although this was a very defensive decision no one in the ground was prepared for what happened later. The third goal had about two minutes of build up play without a Wrexham player touching the ball. I cannot wait to see the goal back on TV, from what I remember every Dons player touched the ball. There was one touch football, players dribbling and switching the play right to left. The crowd were shouting “ole” until the ball was played through for Wade Small. I remember seeing him look over to the assistant, there was no need he was clearly on side, he then just ran and shot past former Manchester City keeper Andy Dibble into the back of the net.

Wrexham had their chances in the game. They managed to hit the bar in the second half and former Tottenham striker Chris Armstrong had a shot that went over. Thy played with lots of spirit and were very hard to break down.

Nothing was going to spoil the day for the fans though. The way we played is the way the fans, that have been so frustrated all season, knew we could. We have shown sign of our ability against Hartlepool, Hull and Colchester. This was a different class. Fans were still talking about that third goal on the way out of the stadium.

Everyone deserves credit today. The fans sang the whole game, the players played out their skins and the management team did exactly what was required. We are really looking forward to next weekend’s game. It cannot come soon enough!

Come on you Dons!

MATCH PREVIEW

MK Dons v Wrexham

Danny Wilson takes charge of his first Dons game at the National Hockey Stadium on Saturday when Wrexham are the visitors. Wrexham, who find themselves in the relegation zone after going into administration and being deducted 10 points, have injuries and suspension ahead of the game in MK. Darren Ferguson, son of Manchester United manager Alex, is suspended for the trip after due to 5 yellow cards and should be replaced by fit again Alex Smith. While Jim Whitley, Carlos Edwards, Brian Carey, Danny Williams and Dean Bennett all miss out due to injury.

Mark Williams, Harry Ntimban-Zeh are fit after recent injuries but Ben Harding, although making good progress is still not fit and will miss out. Malvin Kamara and Nicky Rizzo were both taken off during the game against Post on Tuesday. Rizzo seems has trained and should be available but Kamara is set to miss the match with a bad ankle. There are doubts about Ben Chorley who is suffering from illness. It a big blow for the Dons as Chorley has impressed with recent matches in the centre back role. New on loan signing Paul Mitchell is available for the match.

The recent football league newsletter pointed out some interesting facts about the Dons. Izale McLeod has been caught offside a huge 45 times this season, which is second only to Luton’s Vine with 49. Gary Smith, Lauren Hereve and Gareth Edds have had 42 shots between them this season in the league without scoring. These are the facts that I am sure Danny Wilson will be looking to improve upon, those along with the amount of goals we concede from corners and open play crosses.

We wish Danny and all the lads well fro the game tomorrow. Come on the Dons!

MK Dons 1-1 Peterborough United

The Dons entertained Barry Fry’s Peterborough in League One last night in a rehearsal for the FA Cup 3^rd round. Watched by new manager Danny Wilson and a crowd of 3,913 the two sides fault battled to a deserved draw.

Danny Wilson told BBC 3 Counties radio that he was impressed with the support and the set up of the club, he said “right from the kick off the crowd were signing and supporting the lads” he also said how he believes that the current league status has a lot to do with confidence. He also said he was impressed with the set up of the club after his first visit to the National Hockey Stadium.

Danny Wilson, Pete Winkleman, Mooey and Donnie made an appearance on the pitch before the game to the delight of the fans. The game was less then 5 minutes old before the ‘cowshed’ then followed by the south stand started to sing the new ‘Danny Wilson’s womble army’ song.

There was a buzz of excitement around the ground for the match where Jimmy Gilligan had some selection problems. Mark Williams, Ben Harding and Scott Bevan were all still injured. Ben Chorley continued in central defence and Martin got his place in goal. Lauren Herve & Smithy were in central midfield with Rizzo and Kamara on the wings. Izale McLeod found himself on the bench once again with Allan Smart taking his place.

The Dons went behind against the run of play after 26 minutes when Leroy Constantine found space at the edge of the area and beat David Martin with a sweet swerving shot. The Dons had chances too. Malvin Kamara could have scored after a run down the left he went through on goal, his first shot was cleared off the line and his second was saved by Posh keeper, Tyler. Wade Small and Allan Smart also had chances in the first half but the whole team must have left their shooting boots at home.

Danny Wilson went into the Dons dressing room at half time to offer some advice to the team. It must have done the trick. After just ten minutes Gary Smith had a shot after a run in the box, his shot was well saved and landed at the feet of Wade Small for him to get his 7^th goal of the season. The Dons could have gone ahead after a great shot and fantastic save from the posh keeper. Rizzo was 25 yards out and on any other day would have scored. Mark Taylor must have been delighted although the ‘cowshed’ with their tongues firmly in their cheeks, still chanted ‘dodgy keeper’

The Dons lost Nick Rizzo and Kamara with injuries. Jason Puncheon and Alex Tapp replaced them so both must be a doubt for the game against Wrexham on Saturday.

Overall it was a slightly improved performance; there were a number of positives to take from the game like Ben Chorley in central defence, Lauren Herve as a central defensive midfielder. Other than that you would not say they played like a team trying to impress a new manager.

It was a great chance for the two teams to know what to expect in the FA Cup. Pete Winkleman told 3 Counties that Barry Fry was impressed with the choice of manager, he walked into the executive lounge before the game at the stadium and went straight up to Danny Wilson and said ‘that’s us out of the FA Cup then Danny?’

CAMBRIDGE CITY 0 - MK DONS 1

A goal on 6 minutes from the head of Allan Smart was just enough to see our lads through to the next round of the FA Cup.

This was quite an entertaining game although not an entirely convincing win for the Dons. After the first goal went in I have to admit to thinking that the flood gates would now open and we would be leaving the ground after seeing a hatful of goals from our boys, but to give Cambridge City credit they did not make it easy by any stretch of the imagination and in fact should have made us pay a couple of times for leaving our defensive right side completely open for the opposition to come on to us unmarked.

The fact that we seem to get caught out time after time with exposing these areas of the pitch is a concern to me. I hope that whoever does take over as new manager will address this and put it right. It was nice to see that Jimmy was not afraid to change things around with Chorley playing at centre back. Which in my opinion is a very good move and I would like to see Ben play in this position week in week out. What I would like to see is Palmer playing as a sweeper in front of the back four to help distribute the ball after the likes of Chorley has stopped any offensives by the opposition. I also think that leaving Izale on the bench was a good choice. Izzy needs to know that if he wants to be in the starting eleven he has to perform, and over the last few games he just hasn’t. When he was brought on as substitute tonight however he showed much more determination, but still could do better.

Anyway, back to the game. Nicky Rizzo had another fine performance and looks to be a great asset to the club along side Gary Smith. Wade Small is getting better and better as he is beginning to read the game much better now and is making himself a target for our midfield players. Kamara is also getting back to form as he made a few great runs down the wing and very good crosses into the box for our front men, trouble is, our front men need to keep up with Kamara’s pace!

The Dons continued to push for another goal in the second half and came very close on several occasions with McLeod and Small linking well up front. Izzy hit a superb shot in the last few minutes of the game which beat the keeper but bounce back out off the inside of the post and out of reach of Small who was desperately trying to get to the re-bound. The game ended with just the one goal separating the sides, and we can now look forward to the next round.

As for the refereeing of the game it was at times farcical. The referee was an absolute joke and in my view was very biased towards the home side. He had no idea what he should be doing with yellow cards! Our boys we being reprimanded for the slightest tackle and the home side just got a talking to when a yellow card should have been a no brainer! Shocking!

So we are through to the next round and could get a fantastic draw against one of the big boys in the premiership. Look out for our ball number which is 52!

The draw will take place at 4pm this Sunday and will be live on BBC1, Sky Sports and Radio Five Live.

I would like to express my thanks to Cambridge City FC for creating a great friendly atmosphere for the game. Also the stewards were very friendly and more than helpful. The joint MK Dons / Cambridge City commemorative scarves that Cambridge had for sale were a great touch, kept my neck warm as well!

Report: P.Wright

MK DONS 1 - LUTON TOWN 4

The Dons were beaten on Saturday by a better team, but their performance was much improved. Based of previous performances from the Dons many fans expected the result to go in favor of the Hatters, it was just a question of how many we would lose by. However our lads had a tremendous first half, and although we went in at half time 2-1 down I thoroughly enjoyed the way the Dons were playing football.

We managed to keep our heads up after a cracking first goal from Luton’s Rowan Vine very early in the game. We then played attacking football, with new signing Nick Rizzo looking very confident on the ball. We did in fact have many chances to level the score, but our final delivery or shot just let us down. Wade Small had a glorious chance to get a goal back when he found himself unmarked and clear on goal after a through ball by Izzy, but he slipped as he shot and it went woefully wide. It was at this point when the ref had waved play-on as Izzy was brought down just as he passed the ball to Wade and I am sure the Referee looked up to the heavens when Wade missed the target! These are the times when we must make every chance count, until we can do this then we will find it very hard to move from the bottom of the table.

We also did well at the back to keep Luton from increasing their lead during the first half. I thought that Harry Ntimban-Zeh was fantastic today. If not for him then the score line could well have been higher. I was a bit worried about Puncheon though who appeared to get carried away with following Rizzo up the pitch and leaving his position undefended. Apart from this though we managed to keep the Hatters at bay and just on the stroke of half time Wade Small got a goal back to make the deficit only one and when the half time whistle blew I thought we may actually get something from the game.

After the break we came out looking for the equaliser and should have got one when Kamara had a free header from a corner, only to glance it wide of the goal. These early attacks saw shots from Smith, Izzy and Rizzo but all failed to make them count. (once again this is a worry to me).

Then we seemed to back off a bit and Luton stepped up a gear. They took control of the second half and really did not let us back into the game. The Hatters got the third goal as we failed to deal with a high cross and David Martin was caught undecided on whether to come for the ball or stay o his line, and in the end he did neither and Howard nodded the ball over him as he was rooted to the spot and watched it sail over his head and into the back of the net. Very disappointing. Luton could have increased the score further but both Chorley and Harry made a couple of last man tackles. However Luton’s fourth did eventually come to make the final score 4-1.

Like I said, a much better performance from the Dons but not good enough to beat a team on form. If only we had made the most of our chances then maybe the score line would not have been so flattering.

There is no hiding the fact that this is going to be the biggest home game for the Dons this season. The Hatters are on fine form and look to be on their way to promotion this season.

They appear to be able to score goals from all over the park at the moment and this is something that our young lads are going to have difficulty with. We are without Mark Williams, Dean Lewington and Richard Johnson, three influential players that will be missed for their ability to hold off the Luton attacks.

I feel that the Dons are going to have to come up with the performance of the season tomorrow to stop the Hatters from steam rollering onto another win. That is where we as Dons fans come in....we really need to get behind our team this Saturday and infuse them with all the confidence they need after having such an unsettled time with the loss of Stuart and the uncertainty of not having a new manager.

So let’s hear plenty of noise for the Dons tomorrow, I am sure that the Luton fans will be extremely vocal in support of their team. I am looking forward to this one and hope that every fan can enjoy an exciting game of football, with the Dons emerging victorious of course!

17/11/04

The Dons faced Beaconsfield SYCOB last night at the National Hockey Stadium in the Berks & Bucks Senior Cup. The game went into extra time, for the first time at the National Hockey Stadium, and the Dons came through it with a 2-1 win. Ben Chorley, Alex Tapp, Scott Bevan & Allan Smart joined a host of youngsters and squad players in the squad. The Dons went behind just before half time when Beaconsfield made a rare appearance in the Dons half. A right wing cross seemed to go through the Dons defence and landed at the feet of a Beaconsfield player who slotted home and put the visitors 1-0 up. The Dons had chances too with Allan Smart, Julien Hornuss and Jamie Mackie who came closest to scoring after being put through to a one on one with the keeper but shot just wide.

In the second half the Dons carried on putting the pressure on the Beaconsfield defenders. Julien Hornuss showed some great trickery and flicks on the ball and nearly scored after and impressive one two with Allan Smart. Hornuss burst into the box but failed to make it count. The Dons did pull one back through central defender Leon Crooks. Thomas Carter took a corner and found Crooks unmarked in the box and he headed home to level the scores. Extra time loomed and in the first period the Dons took the lead for the first time again from Crooks and from another corner. The match finished 2-1 and the Dons will have to wait to see whom they face in the quarterfinals.

There were some impressive displays from the Dons. Charlie Emery, Nick Mckoy, Thomas Carter, Craig Ewart, Sam Page and Ross Morley all impressed the crowd and proved that the next ‘lot’ of youngsters waiting for their chance all have ability. Shoyla Oyedele and Leon Crooks showed the watching Jimmy Gilligan and Steve Palmer that that could do a job in the first team if required. Ben Chorley, Smart, Tapp and Bevan all came through the match with no injuries and will be available for Luton on Saturday.

So, we won today and we are now through to the next round of the FA Cup. Did we deserve the win? Yes, but marginally. Lancaster City did not make this game easy by any stretch of the imagination. But I think that it was our fitness that beat the Conference North team today and not a great deal of inspired play.

Lancaster could have embarrassed the Dons a couple of times if not for their final finish. Their number 9 looked very good and did in fact cause us a fair amount of problems. The Dons did just enough though during the first half to keep the visitors at bay and kerb City’s enthusiasm at causing an early upset for the Dons. We did have a couple of chances to go ahead however, with McLeod running onto a perfect pass from Smith with just the keeper in front of him, but he appeared to get a clip from the last defender. The referee however saw things differently and judged that Izzy had fallen over his own feet. Wade (I’ve got springs in my boots) Small managed to leap up to meet a good cross from Izzy but headed just wide. All in all a fairly even game at half time and not the goal fest that many were expecting.

The Dons came out for the second half much more animated. It wasn’t long before a blinding run down the right by Kamara and good low cross found Wade Small to shoot the Dons into the lead.

After this the home side began to take more control and forced the visitors keeper to make two very good saves from Small and Kamara, but we could not increase the scoreline. Gary Smith once again took control in the midfield and was my man of the match.

Towards the end of the game, with nothing to lose, Lancaster threw everyone forward but the Dons did well to keep their heads and clear the danger when needed.

Not and emphatic win for Jimmy’s first game in temporary control, but a win none the less. And we can now look forward to the Second Round draw on Sunday which you can see on BBC1 at 4:00pm.

I can think of only two good things from yesterday’s game….The away support and Wade Small’s goal. Other than that there is nothing positive that I can write at the moment about the performance.

I could mention how we did actually attack the Bristol goal a couple of times and should have scored twice, but to be perfectly honest I am tired of looking for positive slants of every game that we play at the moment. Missed opportunities DO NOT win games, however much you gloss them up in a match report. In fact if it hadn’t been for 3 good saves in the second half by Scott Bevan then we would have been down by 7 or 8 goals!

Our side looked completely disorganised, out of ideas and lacking in every department. I know that we have a great deal of talent in our lads, but it is not coming through onto the pitch at the moment and something has to change to ensure that we get the best from our players.

Looking at our recent form I would say that we are playing in a league that is above us. The displays of late have been dire and would be more suited to Hackney Marshes (No disrespect to Hackney Marshes).

What ever system we were playing was not working and at half time we were 3-0 down. Despite this, only one substitution was made during the second half and nothing was done to change things around to try and make the best of a bad display. We did get a goal back just after the break and it was well taken by Wade, but then we let Bristol get another goal back and just rub salt into the wounds.

So where does the problem lie? Well it is not lack of vocal support from us, we have out sung the home support at every away game we have been to.

Is it a lack of seasoned pro’s to help our young team? The talent we have out there are not gelling together as things stand at the moment. There definitely appears to be a lack of passion from the team with no one talking to each other on the field. The only player I see trying to rally the team and get things done is Ben Chorley. The players that were brought in to do this job are not doing it! Stuart is not getting the best from the lads we have. And his game strategy is not working.

Something has to change, whether it’s new players, new manager or new game plan, either way we will go down to League Two if we carry on like this.

We stood on the terraces and cheered our team on from start to finish. But even this couldn’t spur our lads on to a win. The noise from the Bristol fans was almost non-existent and even at 3-0 up there was not much to be heard from the home support. Chants of “3-0 but you still don’t sing” bellowed from our away support. Having said that, the Bristol fans were probably a little embarrassed at how easy their side tore us apart today and felt that they didn’t want to add insult to injury!

The dons were knocked out of the LDV Vans Trophy last night after a 2-1 defeat by Bristol City.

Palmer, Williams, Lewington, Edds, Johnson, McLeod, Small and Martin were missing from the starting 11, along injured players Smith and Harding. Scott Bevan made a return to the first team after recent injuries. Stuart Murdoch told BBC 3 Counties radio that the game was an opportunity for the fringe players to make their mark.

Serge Makafo, who was yesterday given the number 29 shirt, made his debut for the Dons. Two minutes later he scored his first goal for us with an audacious overhead kick that shocked the crowd. Makafo looked very lively when he came on and it gave the Dons encouragement. Leroy Lita scored twice for Bristol City in each half to give the 2003 winners a ticket to the next round.

Ben Chorley, who played the whole 90 minutes last night, picked up a booking that means he will miss the FA Cup games against Lancaster City. He will be available for the Luton game on the 20^th November.

MUCH BETTER PERFORMANCE FROM THE DONS BUT IS A POINT ENOUGH?

A far more determined Dons side came out to play at the NHS against Walsall today. The game was thoroughly entertaining and certainly had me on the edge of my seat on many occasions.

The introduction of Richard Johnson on loan from QPR definitely bolstered things up in midfield with the absence of Gary Smith due to injury. He took full command of the midfield and gave an extra attacking threat when in front of the Walsall back four. He was so unlucky not to score in the second half with a ferocious shot which left the Walsall keeper playing statues on his goal line but the ball hit the inside of the post and bounced back across the face of the goal.

Unfortunately we conceded another sloppy goal early in the first half when we failed to deal with a fairly innocuous cross which floated over everyone and over a flailing David martin. Our defending is still a bit of a concern to me, as we were playing far too deep in our half and were inviting the Saddlers to attack. At times out two central defenders were playing Walsall on-side every time they came forward , just a few steps forward from our back two would have easily caught them offside. Having said that Steve Palmer did read the game extremely well today and made quite a few crucial tackles and then went on to make a fantastic goal line clearance in the second half when David Martin had been rounded by Walsall’s Leitao. Palmer must have used a sixth sense to see the danger and carried on his defensive run into the goal mouth just as David had been beaten by Leitao to make the very important stop.

Although the goal by Walsall was an early blow for the Dons, they didn’t let their heads drop and they continued to threaten to score. Izale, Chorley and Edds all had shots on goal, but it was our on-loan player Johnson who played an incisive pass straight through the middle of the Walsall defense for Kamara to run onto to and very confidently placed it past Walsall keeper Joe Murphy to get the equalizer.

Both sides continued to look for the next goal after this and Walsall should have scored twice if not for a goal line clearance by Alex Tapp and an almost open goal miss by Walsall’s Michael Standing who should have scored when he was played onside by our back four and left them watching hopelessly as he just put his shot wide of the goal.

Right on the stroke of half time the Dons had a shout for a penalty when Izale was knocked of the ball in the area, but the referee was having none of it and blew the whistle for half time seconds later. At this point I was very impressed with the Dons attitude and thought this was a game that they could go on and win.

The second half was another well fought game by both sides, but no one could break the deadlock to get the crucial second goal. The Dons came very close during the last ten minutes of the game when they continued to press for the winner. But unfortunately each chance was just a whisker away from a well needed victory.

Alex Tapp, who had already had a very good first half, had an absolutely inspired second half. Not only did he continue to chase down everything in the middle of the park, he pulled-off some beautiful moves and ball trickery that would have Manchester United’s Ronaldo green with envy. A couple of times he twisted and turned and span with the ball to take out the Walsall’s players and leave them looking like spectators. This display however had taken its toll on Tapp, who is not yet quite back to full fitness after his long spell off due to injury, and he was substituted by Jason Puncheon late in the second half.

This was a game that the Dons badly need to win to lift us out of the danger zone but at the final whistle it was a game that could have been won by either side. A point each was the fair result but we need to start winning all our home games from now on, and playing like we did today makes me confident that we have the ability to do just that.

Come on You Dons!

Match report by Paul wright

TIME FOR FIGHTING SPIRIT FROM THE LADS!

Tomorrows match against Walsall could be a pivotal game for either side. The Dons are looking to stop a run of disappointing performances, whilst the Saddlers are searching for their first away win of this season.

This is a game where our lads will have to dig deep and show that they have true determination to get the team back up the league table. We all know that we have the quality in our side to beat any team in this league, but the belief from the squad seems to have deserted them over the past few weeks. A couple of wins ago we were all talking of a turn in fortunes that would see the Dons up amongst the mid table. That buzz has subsided a bit of late, but now is the time to really get behind the players tomorrow and cheer them on to a desperately needed 3 points.

Our squad has been hit again with injuries to key players such as Gary Smith, Ben Harding and Scott Bevan to mention justas few. But Stuart has started to bring in loan players to help bridge the gap left by these players. Will this be enough? Well we will find out tomorrow. One thing is for sure, Stuart needs to instill the passion to win back into the squad if we are to get any where this season.

So lets hear plenty of support from all areas of the ground tomorrow afternoon. Our reputation for having very vocal support is fast spreading around the country, so let’s use it to help spur on the team against Walswall.

Come on you Dons!

HUDDERSFIELD 3 - MK DONS 1

The first twenty minutes of the game were fairly even with The Dons and The Terriers trading attacks, with Town being caught regularly offside in what appeared to be a well organised back four of Lewington, Harry, Palmer and Edds.

A slick passing game was the order of the day and we matched Huddersfield man for man upto the half hour mark without really putting Senior to work in the home goal. Town had a goal ruled out for offside after 10 minutes which would be matched by a Dons goal ruled out on 75 minutes.

Then in another crazy period of 15 minutes the Dons blew all their initial efforts of frustrating a Town side who only a week ago were the first team to take points of the leagues run away leaders.

In a disastrous moment of indecision we dallied with a clearance on the edge of our box allowing Abbott to burst through all alone against David Martin and from eight yards he pulled the trigger and beat Martin at his near post on 33 minutes leaving the Dons looking around wondering "how did that happen?"

From here on in it was going to be difficult, what we needed was an immediate response what we got was more of the same, we dropped back into the long ball game and all that happened was Huddersfield brought it straight back with interest.

In a final couple of minutes of the first half we fell apart, heads went down, back to last seasons response not this seasons fight on and bet back into the game.

The second goal was a good strike from Mendes he picked up the ball and ghosted past two or possibly three of our players and unleashed a fierce shot into the top right hand corner Martin did well to get his fingers to it but was unable to stop it crashing into the net.

That was it their tails were up and they we coming at us with every opportunity, we did have a free kick at 0 - 2 down but a poor cross straight into the keeper sounded our last realistic chance of staying in the game, Town pushed straight forward and Edds found himself being the last player between Town and our goal and in the scramble he did well to block the shot but he fell onto the ball and flicked the ball away with his right hand no doubts from where i was i afraid. Abbott Dispatched the ball to Martins left, he had no chance of getting. HT 3 - 0

The Dons came out from half time ala Brentford (five minutes early) but instead of doing heart raising exercise we stood round in groups talking. Town didn't need to chase the game and didn't! It was down to us and to our credit we pushed forward leaving Town to counter attack but we seemed to have learned and handled them better, it was just a shame we had left ourselves so much to do in the second period.

A penalty was awarded to the Dons a bit harsh on the Town defender as a consolation by the ref, who had a quiet game by the standard of the last few weeks and a tad unfairly as ball certainly appeared to hit the hand, with no intent, but who was to take it? No Smith and Izale on the field having missed two this season, did he need to bury his demon? We weren't to find out as Captain Chorley took the ball placed and dispatched it almost identically to the previous one in the same net earlier.

Small and Kamara and went close Izale looked hungry but was cancelled out by Sodje and was substituted late on after an "altercation" with Sodje where the Town defender clearly stood in the path of Izale as he made his way back onto the park after fetching the ball, Sodje went down like a sniper had shot him "looking" to get Izale sent off in a disgraceful attempt of play acting, this had no part in the fair cleanly fought contest and fortunately there were no further incidents or settling of scores. Pacquette, Izales replacement had a chance to add a flattering respectability to the scoreline at the death but he hadn't adjusted to the pace of the game a sliced a fast cross from Puncheon in the dying seconds.

Town 3 Dons 1

Its hard to see what can be done without strengthening the small squad we have, but we have had no news of a possible loan signings and with Smith, Willow and Palmer and Kamara as clearly showing signs of either illness or not recovering from previous injury not forgetting Bevans absence we are also 'light' on the keeping front, no disrespect to Hilda whose frail knees must be knocking everytime Martin goes for a 50 -50 ball.

The faithful travelling fans put in their usual performance which was appreciated by the whole squad at the final whistle, with Stuart being the last to leave the field his name echoing round the Galpharm.

Our last question of the day was to the Town fans themselves in the form of a song 'At 3 - 0 up, you still don't sing' which unsurprisingly wasn't answered at any point of the second half.

Nice ground quiet fans.

Match Report by Franco Volpe.

MK DONS 0 – BRENTFORD 0

On a day that saw the true worth of the Cowshed roof with the rain driving down at times during the game, I would say that this was a hard earned point for the Dons this weekend. It wasn’t to pretty to watch but it was gritty stuff, with both sides battle hard for all three points.

To be fair, it was The Dons that were the most attacking side and really had the Bees on the back foot for most of the game. But the Bees did do well not to concede even with losing Andy Myers to a second yellow. They had just one man up front who did make things difficult for our back four on the break, Dean Burton. Burton was quick and strong as the lone frontman and made life quite difficult for Steve Palmer. Palmer managed very well however to keep Burton under control.

The first half was a heated affair, which wasn’t helped by the very slippery pitch and it wasn’t long before the ref was handing out yellow cards for reckless tackles. To be honest a word from the ref to both team captains to calm the tackles down in such conditions after the first incident would have been better than making a rod for his own back with the first booking.

The tackle that earned Myers his first yellow card was on Gary Smith. The knock he sustained from this tackle has now put him out of the side for 6 weeks. So loan players could be on Stuarts agenda now!

The second half was very much as the first with the Dons pressing forward and the Bees attacking on the break. It was nice to see Malvin Kamara back on the field in the second half, he came on for Shola. Dean Lewington was playing attacking football and had a couple of shots at goal but the deadlock could not be broken. You could say that we missed the final touch in front of goal that Izale has brought in of late. But credit has to go to Brentford who managed to close out the Dons attacks. Having said that, it was not a controlled effort by the Bees to keep our boys out and some of the tackling and off the ball incidents were shocking to see. Ben Chorely was involved in one such incident in which he appeared to have been spat at.

Mark Williams also had a fine game and a couple of very important tackles to keep out Brentford. The back four looked quite solid as well.

A well deserved point is my verdict on this game. A point in fact that moved us three places up the league and out of the relegation zone again!

Well done The Dons!

MK DONS 1 - BRADFORD 2.

A last minute goal from on loan striker Dele Adebola halted the Dons current run of good results in the League. Dele Adebola, who goes back to Coventry today, gave the Bantams the perfect leaving present as he managed to shake of Palmer and Shola to power a shot past David Martin to snatch the victory.

To be honest Adebola always looked to be getting the better of Palmer whenever he got the ball, and no matter how hard it is to take, a goal form the on loan striker was always on the cards.

There were, however, plenty of positives to be taken from the game last night, both on and off the pitch. Upon arriving at the ground there was a real buzz about the place. Our team with their recent form has instilled a new air of confidence throughout the fans. Although we lost last night, it only feels like a minor stumble rather than the norm, as it did last season. The Dons had a superb first half with Izale, once again, getting the goal to put us in the lead. The play leading up to the goal was first class and Izale looked so comfortable in front of goal and just slotted it home. The new roof on the East Stand, now known as the Cowshed, made all the difference for the East Stand faithful. Their vociferous support amplified by the new shelter.

The second half pretty much went the way of the Dons. Plenty of chances came our way and we had the majority of the possession. The only down side was that we didn’t take our chances and finish the game off. The equaliser for Bradford came from a corner. This really does seem to be a very week point in our game that we need to work on immediately. After the goal we took control once again but Bradford, with Adebola up front, always looked threatening on the break. And we did give one or two sloppy balls away in midfield that let them in from time to time. This was a game for the taking and to say that the lads deserved at least a point for their efforts is an understatement.

I am disappointed with the way we lost, but not worried that this is the going to be the shape for the rest of the season. I feel sure that the lads can put this defeat to one side and move on with the skill and determination we all know they have to restart our climb back up the table.

One of the real disappointments from last night was the absolutely shocking refereeing. I don’t think that I have witnessed as many poor decisions in one game than I did last night! I counted 34 diabolical decisions last night from the ref, and many more minor examples. He may as well have been wearing a Bradford shirt in the first half. Then in the second both sides were suffering from his poor decision making.

Anyway, we have to wait a week now before the next instalment from the Dons, when we face Brentford here at Home at the NHS. The weekends just don’t come round soon enough do they?

Come on You Dons!

LAST MINUTE GOAL EARNS US A POINT..

It wasn’t the most convincing performance by the Dons at Hillsborough, but the Dons did just about enough to grab the last minute goal that earned us a point.

I am sure that The Owls will see this game as a definite two points lost. The Dons didn’t appear to have a great deal of time on the ball to play the way they have over the last few games which seemed to unsettle the lads into using the long ball again instead of the great passing game that we know they can play. Sheffield made the most of this and made us hurry things far too much. Having said that if we can play bad and still earn a point away that is plenty good enough for me.

To be honest there isn’t a great deal to write about the game, it was pretty flat with just a couple chances for the Owls in the first half where they should have scored. Wade Small did have a great chance with a one on one run at the keeper but the Owls keeper managed to smother the ball just in time. Izale made another great run down the left but was fouled just outside the box. Edds took the free kick which flew across the face of the goal but was missed by everyone and then went out for a goal kick.

The second half was similar with The Dons holding up well to the pressure.

Neither side looked like scoring so it was a bit of s surprise when the Owls took the lead with a goalmouth scramble where the Dons failed to clear the ball and the Owls scored from close range.

Sheffield then sat back on their lead after they scored, but this actually gave the Dons a bit more space to threaten. Alex Tapp came on for Jason Puncheon and started to make some great through balls to the front players. It wasn’t long before he had crossed a ball for Ben Chorley to just head wide of the goal. Lewington had a run down the left and a great shot at goal, which went wide of the upright. Moments later Izale was on the run again but was fouled, he then reacted to the guilty player but was yellow carded. He now misses the next game to Bradford this Friday.

On 88 minutes the Don’s pressure paid off with Izale, once again, showing great determination by continuing his run after the ball had be struck at the Owls keeper who did not hold on to it and Izzy was able to fire the shot from a very acute angle at close range.

The away support, which was once again very vocal throughout the game, erupted into a chorus of “There’s only one Izale Mcleod”. For the last two minutes of the game the voices of the away support boomed around the stadium as the Owls fans left early obviously disappointed at the lost points.

Not a great game, but a great Stadium to visit and the home fans were friendly and there were plenty of them. I would have said there were about 20,000 of them and 250 of us. Guess who made the most noise though!

Well done The Dons!

SHEFFEILD WED v MK DONS

Can the Dons continue their fantastic goal scoring form and come away from Hillsborough with another win in the League.

With Izale back from his one match Ban, this could be another chance for him to increase his very impressive goal tally. Other current Goal scorers include Gary Smith, Wade Small, Dean Lewington and of course our newest striker Richard Pacquette. I would expect to see plenty of goal attempts tomorrow as we have plenty of fire power up front now.

We just need to tighten up at the back to stop The Owls picking up any sloppy goals. The two goals we let in against Hartlepool should have been avoided and when you are playing away you cannot afford to give away goals like that!

Hillsborough is probably one of the best grounds we will visit in the League this season and is definitely worth the trip to Sheffield to show our support for the Dons. So far this season the away support has been absolutely fantastic and now is the time to show the 20,000 strong crowd at Hillsborough this Saturday that we can make some noise. Our last game with this sort of attendance was away at Birmingham in the FA Cup last season, and I am sure you will all remember how great that was!

The Owls have been having quite a bad time of it of late with only one win at Home so far this season. They now have a new manager, Paul Sturrock, to help sort them out. Lets hope the Dons can capitalise on there recent poor form.

I look forward to seeing you all there!….. Come On You Dons!

MK Dons 0 – Reading 5

The Dons reserves lost to a very commanding reading side this evening. The Dons didn’t really get into their stride at all, they weren’t given the chance to be honest.

Reading looked bigger, stronger and had more ideas than the home side. 3 goals in the first half basically sealed the victory for the Royals. Then two in the second half just rubbed slat in the wounds. The goals for reading were scored by Shaun Goater (2), Bobby Conway (2) and substitute Simon Cox (1).

Royals defender Peter Castle went off after he accidentally clashed heads with Jamie Mackie. His eye looked to be in a bad way, but hopefully not too serious, we wish him well.

One of the highlights of the match tonight was that we had two local lads playing for the Dons for the first time at the NHS. Mark Toms and Tony Hill both from Bradwell football club looked very promising out on the pitch this evening. Mark Toms in particular making some very good runs down the right and alos looked very bright with the ball whilst taking on the Reading defence. Well done lads!

We also saw the long awaited return of Alex Tapp. He appeared to be getting back into form although he obviously took things a bit steady, 12 months is a long time out of the game. Tapp was replaced at half time with Ryan Jerwood. Secoind half subs were Tom Carter for Herve and Julien Hornuss on for Luke Wildy.

The sight of the East Stand roof warmed the heart. The main structure is complete with just the cladding to be installed. It is going to be the place to be for the next Home game.

Our stadium announcer tonight made a bit of a blooper, with the announcement of a substitution for Wimbledon. He quickly made amends and offered his resignation!! He also reminded the crowd of the “Find a Announcer Competition” that the supporters association is holding.

Whilst we are on the subject, don’t forget that we are still open for applications for the find an announcer night, the evening is to be held at the NHS on Friday 15^th October at 7:30pm. Click on link and fill in an application form. The winner will be the announcer for one the following reserve games after the competition. So if you think you can do better than some of our announcers so far then why not have a go yourself. The night will be very light hearted with plenty of fun! Announcer competition.

LDV VANS TROPHY

BRENTFORD 0 - MK DONS 3

The Dons have now progressed through to the second round of the LDV Trophy after beating Brentford 3-0 at Griffen Park.

The Brentford fans made the travelling Dons supporters feel very welcome, they showed us where to go and helped us with which turnstiles we should be using. A big thank you to them. Inside the ground they were not very loud and once again it was the Dons support that made all the noise for the entire game.

The Dons took the lead after 7 minutes through Gary Smith scoring his second foal in two games after coming back from injury. Further goals from the man of the match Dean Lewington and a first goal for our new striker Richard Pacquette. The Dons dominated the game and managed 10 shots to Brentford's 2, they also had the majority of the possession.

Gary Smith had another superb game, and dominated the midfield creating plenty lovely through balls and nice passing moves. In fact we dominated the entire game and completely overrun the home side. David Martin had a very quiet night in goal.

The Dons were without Malvin Kamara, Ben Harding, Scott Bevan and top scorer Izzy McLeod. Brentford took the opportunity to rest some of their first team regulars. The Dons do not have a big enough squad to be able to do that.

Julien Hornuss came on in the second half for Shola and showed why he should be making more first team appearances. Harry Ntimban-Zeh came on for Palmer and Ben Chorley made way for Herve. Each player having a good game.

A crowd of 1,672 were nearly treated to a 4th goal for the Dons, but for the second match in a row we hit the cross bar. The statistics will show that this was the Dons 3rd win in four games.

Well done the Dons!!!

MK DONS 4 – HARTLEPOOL 2

Two days before our First year anniversary of playing our first home game in MK, and we can celebrate with a 4-2 victory over the Pools.

The Dons looked far more committed than earlier in the week, and threatened to score a couple of times during the first half. They put plenty of pressure on the Hartlepool defence. It felt like it was only to be a matter of time before we scored. But like so many time this season we didn’t make the most of the chances and the Pools scored a very easy goal when our defence let the ball go straight through to Hartlepool’s striker Adam Boyd to slide the ball into the net past a helpless Scott Bevan. To be honest Bevan should have come out to the ball, but we wont hold that against him.

It wasn’t long however before we pulled a goal back with our super striker Izale Mcleod scoring from a Gary Smith cross with one of the softest headed goals he will probably score!

The Dons continued to push for the second goal and it almost came for Gareth Edds who struck a sweet volley towards the Hartlepool goal which looked to be going in all the way until a fantastic save from Hartlepool’s keeper Jim Provett.

The sides went in 1-1 at half time with the Dons firmly on top of the game.

The away side came out onto the pitch very early for the second half as if ready to take the game to the Dons. But they were not given the chance, as immediately after the restart, Wade Small received the ball from the right and ran 15 yards towards the middle of the pitch before firing a cracker of a shot just under the cross bar and into the back of the net.

This really sparked the Dons off on the offensive again and with the Home fans full of noise they were on their way for a third when Izzy was brought down in the box for a Dons penalty. Gary Smith placed the ball on the spot and calmly fired the ball into the goal for the Dons third.

With an unbelievable aura of expectancy the crowed urged the Dons on for another goal and they were rewarded with one when Wade Small flicked the ball onto Izzy’s diving header right in front of the goal for the Dons Forth.

With the Dons on top of the game so much now, the chances were coming thick and fast. Smithy, who had an overwhelming effect on the team in midfield and realy drove them all the way, had two chances to increase the lead, but just missed out.

Also Gareth Edds was very unlucky not to score with a scorcher of a shot hitting the underside of the bar and the bouncing back out into the pitch.

With 15 minutes left to play the game became a farce with the referee losing control of a situation which saw Izzy receive two yellow cards in a matter of seconds, Hartlepool’s number 15 was yellow carded then given a straight red for head butting Izale, and then the Pool’s keeper was booked in the fracas.

Izzy appeared to be initially booked for getting out the way of an aggressive Pool’s number 15, and was then yellow carded again for winning the ball back in a fairly tame tackle. He was then head butted by the Pool’s Number 15 who was only red carded after the fourth official stepped in to sort things out. The away keeper walked across to see what was going on and was booked for doing so!

Stuart Murdoch was furious and had to be held back at the touchline from showing his anger at the poor decision making.

The game restarted, minus two players, and it was the away team that pressed abit harder with the home side seeming to go off the boil for a short time. The pools managed another sloppy goal when Mark Williams lost the ball in front of goal with no immediate danger to let in Boyd again for his second of the game.

The Dons soon took control back again and the home fans got their first glimpse of our new striker Richard Pacquette who came on for Wade Small. Pacquette was soon threatening the Pool’s goal and looks very strong up front and able to hold the ball up well. Another good signing by Stuart Murdoch! The Dons finished very strong and left the field to a standing ovation from the home crowd.

Well don the Dons, a truly commanding performance!

Just in - Player news:

Allan Smart was out of the action today with an ankle injury but should be back for the games next week.

Kamara could be back for Tuesdays game against Brentford in the LDV Cup.

Izale Mcleod will miss the next two games for his sending off today.

The referee said after the match that Izzy was booked the second time for trying to get the number 15 sent off as contact was not actually made with the head butt. But the Hartlepool player had to go for the intent of the headbutt

MK DONS vs HARTLEPOOL

Match Preview..

Today the Dons take on Hartlepool who are sitting just below the playoff zone with 14 points. This is a must win game for the Dons today if we really want to capitalise on last weekends win over sixth place Colchester United.

The disappointment of going out of the Carling cup should now have been forgotten by the players and hopefully they will now put all their efforts into putting on a good performance against the Pools.

Hartlepool’s away record has been very poor so far this season in comparison to their home form. However the Dons seem to play better away at the moment so this could be quite a battle today for both teams to change the trend.

Let’s get behind our lads today at the NHS and sing them to victory!

This week has seen a sad loss to football with the death of one of England’s greatest managers Brian Clough. It was at Hartlepool that ‘old big ead” started his managerial career back in 1965.

Our thoughts go out to all of Brian’s family at this sad time but hope that they can take comfort in knowing that anyone that has followed this great game of ours will never forget Brian Clough and what he achieved in his colourful lifetime. Brian was able to take a team with fairly ordinary players and bring out the absolute best in each and every one of them to make the whole team a great team. He was respected by players and fans alike and his name will be legend in the football world forever.

21/092004

Dons Out Of The Cup!

Once again, just when you get your hopes up for a good result, you get let down. On the back of a fantastic win on Saturday the home fans were expecting the Dons to come out all guns blazing and give the Bluebirds a really good game. However 3 goals in about 20 minutes soon put the brakes on that.

The Cardiff players must have thought that they could score at will during the first half. From a Dons point of view the goals were shocking. Once again an easy goal came from a corner and a lack of communication and sloppy play in defence let the Bluebirds in for the other two.

Cardiff could and should have scored again during the first half but poor finishing kept the score line less of a embarrassment. The first half was very disappointing from the Dons who looked like a completely different side from Saturday. The only highlight was when Smart should have scored to make it 3-1, which could have been a turning point, but with the whole goal to choose from just 10 yards he fired it straight at the keeper.

The Dons started the second half a bit brighter, with Izzy having a good claim for a penalty after being bundled off the ball in the Bluebirds area. But the referee just turned away. Minutes later however the referee was sending of Harry Ntimban-Zeh for a professional foul, which seemed very harsh.

The one great thing about the second half was the return of Gary Smith. He came on early in the second half for Herve who had a terrible game. Smithy soon took control of the midfield and it wasn’t long before he was making the sort of runs and passing of the ball that have made him a fans favourite.

However, even with Smithy back on the field the Bluebirds still managed to capitalise on another corner to make the score an embarrassing 4-0. How many goals must we concede from corners before we learn to defend them.

The second half was better than the first and the Dons did put things together better and threaten the Cardiff goal. But it wasn’t until Julien Hornuss came on for Jason Puncheon that we managed to get down the left and cross the ball into the danger zone.

The home crowd had been calling for Julien for most of the second half and when he came on he did not disappoint. It was Hornuss that crossed the ball that led to Izzy scoring for the Dons from close range in the 86 minute. Hornuss had also set up Izale with a cross moments earlier which Izzy just headed over the bar.

The Dons left it all far too late to reduce the deficit, but they did look better in the final minutes than for most of the game.

The East Stand continued to show their support for the team throughout the game making the majority of the noise, but unfortunately on this occasion we could not help our lads to victory.

The team should now regroup and concentrate on getting a vital three points this Saturday against Hartlepool in the league. A win on Saturday should soften the blow of not meeting one of the big teams in the next round of the Carling Cup.

Come On You Dons!

Report: Paul Wright.

18/092004

Colchester United 0 – MK Dons 1

The travelling Dons fans witnessed a fantastic show of unity from the MKDons players today at Layer Road. The U’s were made to look very ordinary by the Dons, and didn’t look like a side that is second in the Division.

Right from the start the away fans found their voice which appeared to help spur on the Dons players to a display of great passing, control and attacking play. Gone was the long ball hoof that seemed to let us down against Doncaster last week, and in came a fluidity to the team that flowed through each player making them look like a team that have played together for seasons rather than a matter of months.

Mark Williams was a rock at the back and showed us all why he is such an important player for Northern Ireland. He controlled the back four and made sure that hardly anything that Colchester tried to put through didn’t make it. Gareth Edds is also proving what a great signing he was by Stuart, as he controls the left side so well.

Scott Bevan had a superb game in goal today, making a couple of important stops and catching anything that came in at height with ease.

Jason Puncheon did very well after coming on for Malvin, who went off with a hamstring injury very early on in the game.

Ben Chorely kept the midfield together today and really took charge against the U’s offensive. It was a headed ball from Chorley that led to Izale Mcleod’s goal right on the stroke of halftime to give the Dons the lead.

Izale continued to worry the Colchester defence all game and battled for every ball and ran for everything. He should have had at least two more goals today but his final finish let him down. The low through balls are definitely more suited to Izale’s play than the high long balls.

All-in-all a great performance from all the Dons team and a great away support to boot. We didn’t give the home fans any chance to cheer on their side and to be honest they didn’t have a great deal to cheer about anyway.

Well done The Dons!!

Report: Paul Wright.

11/092004

MKDONS 0 – DONCASTER 1

This should have been a game where the Dons fans would witness another home win and the continuation of a revival in clubs fortunes. However many fans left the stadium today rueing missed chances after just only one real effort on goal by the away side saw us lose three points.

The Dons fans where up for this game from the start, and the team responded to the vocal support with the majority of the play and chances in the first half. The home side had the wind behind them and made good use of it to keep the ball in the oppositions half. The Dons showed some very good attacking play with a host of chances coming our way which were just wide of the mark.

Gareth Edds had a blistering half volley skim the top of the cross bar from just outside the area which looked all the way as though it was going to go in.

Izzy was also causing trouble with his runs on goal but was denied by the Rovers keeper. Wade Small, who was in for an injured Malvin Kamara, blasted a shot wide of the goal after being put through by Ben Chorley.

Smart also made some good runs through the Rovers defence but was caught offside too often to make anything of them although he did trouble the Rovers keeper on a couple of occasions. Herve also saw a chance go wide.

One thing the Dons didn’t do was to make the most of several corners they had, with three corners being played to much into the wind and just sailing past everyone and over the keepers cross-bar.

Dons keeper Scott Bevan had to keep his wits about him a couple of times in the first half to come out early to intercept a couple of clear runs by the Rovers.

In-all-in the first half went with the Dons but unfortunately there was no goal for their efforts and the sides went in at half time 0-0.

The second half start brightly for both sides with the Dons looking as though they would continue where they left off with Smart hitting the side netting from the free kick. But then the Rovers came back into the game and the Dons seemed to lose their shape shortly after this and Doncaster were denied a goal by an excellent stop by Scott Bevan.

The away support became very vocal for the first time in the match about ten minutes into the second half, and this seemed to spring the Rovers into action. Doncaster then scored on 66 minutes from a corner which left Bevan totally exposed when the ball seemed to go by three Dons defenders to the unmarked Rovers number six to head the ball into the back of the net, which Scott Bevan could do nothing about.

The home side continued to have quite a bit of possession but didn’t really threaten to score until Izale Mcleod made a run down the left and should have put in a sitter of a ball to Jamie Mackie, (On for Herve and his first appearance for the first team this season), but Izzy fumbled it just at the wrong moment.

There was a late spirited attack from the Dons towards the end of the game, which was spurred on by the home crowd, but even though we had a number of free kicks and corners we could not make the most of them.

The game ended with the dons still on the attack, but the score remained 0-1 to the Rovers. A game where we really should have won but didn’t make the most of our chances.

Match report: Paul Wright

The Dons put on a much improved display today to take all three points from today’s home game against Torquay.

Before the kick-off the Dons players huddled in a circle and looked much more determined to put on a good show at the NHS.

Scott Bevan was back in goal today, and although David Martin has shown that he is a very good keeper that is improving all the time, Scott appeared to give our back four a bit more confidence. Plus his size just made the goal look so much smaller for the opposition.

Right from the kick-off the lads provided the supporters with plenty to cheer about as they took hold of the game and threatened the Torquay goal. The dons started to get through the Torquay midfield with Gareth Edds having a fantastic game playing at right back. He tool control of that side of the pitch and was soon bring the ball up field and making crosses for our front men.

Gareth set up the first chance for Allan Smart to knock in a looping header, which the Torquay keeper only just manage to nudge over the bar. After this the Dons seemed to threaten the Torquay goal with each attack. Kamara had a chance, Herve had two very good chances of starting the scoring and was very unlucky not to when his shot hit the inside of the post and then bounced out across the face of the goal before being cleared, Jason Puncheon came close and Allan Smart with a great volley which just flew inches past the post.

It was beginning to feel like one of those games when nothing was going to go in and the opposition might just nick a goal on the break. Torquay threatened a couple of times, which Bevan dealt with, but we needed that first goal.

Just into added time in the first half the Dons got the goal they so much deserved. Jason Puncheon won the ball in the Torqay half and blasted a shot from 20 yards which released a huge cheer of delight and relief from the home crowd. Seconds later the Ref blew for half time. A very good first half performance from the Dons and they left the pitch to a standing ovation from the home support.

The Dons came out for the second half and looked just as determined as they did in the first. McLeod continuing his runs and threatening to score early on. McLeod showed some great running with the ball and seemed to be everywhere in the second half. He made life very difficult for the Torquay defense, but also came back to help out defensively himself when needed.

Torquay did however start to creep back into the game and could have taken at least a point from today’s game if not for a couple of great saves by Scott Bevan.

Stuart substituted Puncheon and Herve midway through the second half with Wade Small and Ben Harding. Both players soon making their mark on the game with Harding stinging the hands of the Torquay keeper with a 20 yard shot, and Small making some good runs down the left.

Harding put a superb ball through to McLeod late on in the game and the Dons should have been looking at a 2-0 lead but the ball seemed to get under Izzy's feet just at the vital moment and his shot went wide of the goal.

Overall a vastly improved Dons side came out to play today. The team showed much more determination to get something from this game and were rewarded with three points. They were a delight to watch and the home fans showed their delight with a standing ovation at the end of the game.

Bobby Gould (Head Coach) quote in the programme:

"The most frequent question I get at the moment is my thoughts on MK Dons taking over the role of Wimbledon Football Club. I have to admit I am very sad at the situation, but in life we say things must go forward and this is a forward move for football."

The Dons travelled to London road for the first round of the Carling Cup. Stuart Murdoch had promised changes and changes were made. Whether forced or otherwise were welcomed by the supporters as a positive step. Izzy started wide left, although not his best position but he gave it a go.

With Williams not in the squad and Palmer in midfield we had a new look defensive pairing. The partnership of Harry and Nathan Koo-Boothe was an interesting option. Harry's extendable legs were much in force in the first half winning challenges that he had no right to win. Smart was constantly held down or having his shirt pulled by defenders but still managing to make great layoffs - unfortunately as Izzy was so wide there was no one to feed off them.

The rain was on and off all match. Our 200 or so supporters were under cover near the corner flag and had a birds eye view of their corner kickers repeated flouting of the laws of the game by deliberately placing the ball outside of the D - as this was the opposite side to the linesman it was not spotted by the officials. Posh’s Andy Legg consistently was thrown a towel to clean the ball for any throw-ins - the towel was denied our players, eventually the 4th official stepped in to remove the towel. This is one of the advantages of playing at home. Koo-Boothe suffered a cut when challenging for the ball and was off the pitch for several minutes receiving treatment. Our lads had seemed to have realised that there was a midfield and were using it to good effect. Martin was coming off his line and claiming the ball confidently. Half time came and we were pleased with the 0-0 scoreline, nice to have a clean sheet..

Second half

Peterborough had obviously had a rocket at half time and were going for it. Wade Small booked for a "clean" tackle in front of the dugouts. I am sure this had nothing to do with Barry Fry and his team jumping and shouting? Izzy was moved from the wing to a more central role, this made a difference.

1st goal – After a Dons corner and a scrambled affair with their goalkeeper at fault for dropping the ball, Izzy managed to react and toe poke it in. Obviously the Dons fans went wild (usual volume - two drummers) The Dons were now playing with confidence and were playing attractive attacking football now being, BUT our players still were not playing 100% yet we seemed to be getting the ascendancy over a team much higher in the league than us and who had not been beaten at home this season.

For the second goal a right wing cross finds Smart on the 6 yd line who coolly slots the ball into the net for his third of the season. Murdoch was very visable by the touch line, it wa great to see him encourage the supporters to raise the volume still higher...response was immediate.

Koo-Boothe goes down with what looked like cramp - he had played well on his debut and was substituted by Puncheon - Crooks moving to Central defence from Left back. Hereve, who has played his socks off with cleaver passes and crunching tackles, was substituted by Malvin who is asked to play centre midfield near the end of the match. Wade attacks down the left wing and crosses to the centre - Malvin swivels and hits it goalwards, somehow it bobbles over the diving goalkeepers body into the back of the net. Boro once again fail to get beyond the first round - I'm informed that makes it 11 years...

Fans jubilant - match ends to virtually empty Peterborough stands....Players on cloud 9 celebrate as if they have won the league. Clean sheet, 3 goals just the boost they needed.

Come on the Dons!

20/08/2004

The Dons entertain AFC Bournemouth at the National Hockey Stadium on Saturday for their second home game of the season.

They will still be without goalkeeper Scott Bevan, so on loan Paul Rachubka will continue in goal. There injury doubts for Dons duo Gary Smith and Dean Lewington. Alex Tapp is still not ready for a return to the first team. Ben Chorley is available after completing his suspension. Manager Stuart Murdoch told BBC 3 Counties “Ben will feature in the starting line-up, no one has done enough to keep him out”

It is widely expected that the Dons may make a number of changes. Julien Hornuss may come in and either play in attack or on the wing. Gareth Edds could come in as cover for Dean Lewington if he does not make it.

For Bournemouth, Dani Rodrigues should be fit after recovering from a hamstring problem. Steve Fletcher, Stephen Purches and Jason Tindall will not play due to injuries.

Tickets are still available. Bournemouth supporters should buy their tickets in advance from Dean Court, but tickets for the West Stand will be available on the day of the game. Prices are adults £15.00, concessions £10.00 and under-16s £8.00.

The ref for the game tomorrow is Brian Curson

The Dons travelled to The County Ground on Saturday for their second away game of the season and were narrowly defeated 2-1 by Swindon.

The Dons missed a host of chances in the game and even had a penalty saved after Malvin Kamara was failed in the box. Izzy McLeod took the ball from Allan Smart to take the spot kick but saw his effort saved by the Swindon keeper.

Swindon went in front for the first time this season on 23 minutes when Sam Parkin headed in from inside the box. Smart scored just before halt time with a sweet left foot shot that left the keeper with no chance.

Swindon’s Howard, who had tried to get both Steve Palmer and Mark Williams sent off during the game, then effectively finished off the game when he was found unmarked in the box.

After the game Stuart Murdoch told the club’s official site "You can look at it from one point of view and say that we should have gone 2-1 up. It was an excellent save, but when you get an opportunity to go 2-1 up, or if Allan Smart's header had gone in the first half to put us 1-0 up, if you're looking at those things then we're kidding ourselves.

"The football we played today wasn't acceptable from my point of view. We didn't pass the ball, we had no cohesion and it was just very disappointing after the work that we'd put in."

"To be honest I think we've missed Ben Chorley. We missed that type of midfielder with a fighting, battling spirit that gets out of things, and whilst I'm not going to put pressure on him and say that he's going to be the saviour, I think we're definitely in need of what he did for us in the middle of the park. You have to earn the right to play in this League. You have to earn the right to play in any League."

Port Vale 3 – MK Dons 2

The first away game for the Dons ended in a 3-2 defeat to the Valiants.

Around 120 travelling fans witnessed the defeat, but gave a very good account of themselves cheering on the lads and were far more vocal than the Home side.

Although the home side were quiet during the game, they did make us feel quite welcome when we arrived and we chatted with several vale fans before the game.

Both sides started well but it was Port Vale that threatened to score first with several efforts going just wide of the uprights. But it was Ben Harding that opened the scoring for the Dons after 19 minutes after Malvin had slid the ball across the face of the six yard box and Ben scored with a right foot shot which flashed across the Vale keeper and straight into the back of the net.

It has to be said that the refereeing for this game was not the best and many bad decisions were made throughout the night. The first being the booking of Kamara for a tackle where he clearly go the ball legally on 42 minutes inside the Port Vale half.

Not long after this Vale got a goal back when A header across goal to Booker was not dealt with properly within the Dons penalty area and he managed to fire his hot through Keeper Rachubka to make the score 1-1.

Another blinding bit of refereeing saw Herve booked for a challenge where once again the ball was taken first and even the assistant Referee had given throw-in resulting from the tackle and he was on top of the incident. But was over ruled by the Ref!!

Half time 1-1.

Port Vale started the second half and within 30 seconds took the lead with a solo run by Armstrong and shot into the bottom left of the goal made it 2-1 to the Vale. Not sure how he managed to get through almost unchallenged it did look as though the Dons were still thinking about their half time oranges!

The Dons then came back strong with the help of the away fans cheering them on, and they managed to threaten the goal with efforts from Mcleod who looked the most threatening up front.

Unfortunately it was the Vale that scored again on 65 minutes with another defensive lapse, which left two attacking players completely unmarked for Armstrong to score his second.

Shortly after Kamara was tackled hard by the Vale Keeper and he stayed down for some time before being substituted by Allan Smart. Kamara went off the pitch to the chant of “Kamara my Lord, Kamara” loudly sung by the Dons away following.

Izale had another great chance later in the game when he managed a great solo run across the face of the goal only to run it too far before he could shoot at the goal. How he didn’t bang it into the back of the net was on all the lips of the away fans.

The Dons picked themselves up once again and showed some very good attacking play and much better passing of the ball rather than the long ball.

It wasn’t long before the Dons had a free kick in front of the Port Vale goal and once again it was Harding that riffled the ball along the ground just beating the Vale keeper to make the score 3-2.

Smith had the next chance with just the Vale keeper managing to push his shot away before being cleared.

The Dons finished strong but time had really run out for them. It was a good attacking display but the Dons still lacked a bit of co-ordination with the formation.

The game ended 3-2 to Port Vale.

Report by Paul Wright

MK Dons 1 - Barnsley 1

The Dons entertained Barnsley at the NHS on Saturday and fought out a 1-1 draw.

With so many Dons making their debut it was a very promising performance by the team. We were winning headers upfront, winning headers at the back and played some very attacking football. The extra height we gained with new signings during the closed season has helped here.

Dons new signing McLeod nearly scored in the first 10 minutes. Allan Smart flicked on a Lewington cross but McLeod just flicked the ball wide. There were a number of people wondering how he managed to get on the end of the flick on? It seemed a dead cert that the keeper would get there.

Barnsley went ahead in the 22nd minute from Barnsley's Reid. Rachubka failed to collect the corner and that Reid unchallenged to head home.

Both teams were then very quiet as they battled with the soaring temperatures. Just before half time we saw shots from Kamara, Harding and another run and shot from McLeod that was just wide.

The Dons did not make any changes at half time. They were now attacking the 'Smith End'. Again with the high temperatures soaring it was a slow start but after Herve came on for Smart things started to turn around.

Small went up front with McLeod, Harding went wide left and Herve sat in Midfield with Smith. Barnsley struggled with Small, Izzy and kamara all running at them.

The Barnsley goalkeeper dropped a cross from Harding in the 76th minute and McLeod popped up to score on his debut for the Dons. We then got our first chance to hear our new 'celebration' music supplied by Trevor.

Hornuss then replaced McLeod and Izzy got the standing ovation he deserved. With his pace and willingness to run with the ball at the defenders he is going to be a big hit in League one.

Playing against a very well organised Barnsley team it was always going to be difficult. Barnsley only had one shot on target the whole game compared to the Dons five.

In summary it was a very hot day and Barnsley, who surely will be around the top at the end of the season, were tough to break down. Izale 'Izzy' McLeod looks like he is the 20 goals a season man we have all been desperate for.

Well done the Dons!

Report by Ian Steele.

The MK Dons won their game against Spanish opposition Recreativo de Huelva yesterday to go through to the Final of the 2004 Portimao Cup in Portugal.

Stuart Murdoch tried out a different formation for this game which appeared to work very well with Steve Palmer playing alongside Mark Williams at the back, Ben Harding in midfield with Laurent Herve and new signing Izale Mcleod playing up front with Allan Smart. Izale played for the whole 90 minutes, who then partnered Wade Small for the second half.

Makvin Kamara scored first for the Dons to take the lead. But soon after Recreativo de Huelva equalised to make the score 1-1.

It was Gary Smith who then regained the lead for the Dons with the game finishing at 2-1 to the Dons!

We now face the winners of the game between Portimonense vs Olhanense on Sunday evening.

Manager Stuart Murdoch quoted “It was a decent game, the standard of opposition was the best we’ve met so far” he added “We now need to make sure the players rest before Sunday’s game”

BEDFORD TOWN 1 – MK DONS 1

This was the last pre-season game for the Dons before they fly out to Portugal on Friday for their mini tournament before the start of the new season.

Although the score was not what many of us had anticipated, we saw much more of an attacking side than the previous game against the Glens.

The Bedford side obviously had something to prove tonight and were going in hard on every tackle, where as our lads had the spectre of an injury free start to the new season hanging over their heads.

Non-the less for that the Dons were playing some good football and we saw several glimpses of what we can look forward to in the new season. There were plenty of attempts on goal from long range, which we didn’t see too many of last season. We hit the uprights and cross bar several times and tested their keeper with several close range attempts.

Stuart started the first half with a 4-4-2 formation which, worked well with Paul Harries starting for the first time after coming off against Glentoran with a muscle strain. Paul was joined up front by Wade Small and showed some very good attacking play up front and managed to hold the ball up well. He even hit the bar with a looping header.

Gary Smith played well in midfield battling his way through the Bedford midfield. Gareth Edds had a quiet first half and didn’t seem to get in his stride. Mark Williams still looked to be lacking full match fitness although he still remained quite solid at the back.

Jason Puncheon made some good runs down the left to trouble the Bedford defence and looks as though he could be our man on that side.

Although the Dons made plenty of chances the teams went in at half time 0-0, with David Martin not having to make a save.

All but Paul Harries started the second half, who was replaced by Ben Harding due to what appeared to be a twisted ankle. Ben quickly seemed to take control and looked very solid in midfield, combining well with Wade Small.

The Dons certainly looked much brighter at the start of the second half and it wasn’t long before Ben Harding scored to make it 1-0 to the Dons.

The Dons fans found their voice at this point and it wasn’t long before both the Dons and the Bedford fans were enjoying a fair bit of banter from the terraces.

Gareth Edds seemed to pick up a bit as well and he had a cracking shot rattle the cross bar. He was later replaced by Fans favourite Jamie Mackie, who once again came onto the pitch much to the delight of the Dons Fans. Jamie battled well but didn’t appear to be getting the support up front that he needed.

Stuart Murdoch also brought on Laurent Herve and Julien Hornuss during the second half and later Ben “chopper” Chorley for an injured Wade Small.

Unfortunately it was Herve that made a terrible back pass that let in a Bradford Striker to twist and turn his way through the Dons defence seemingly unchallenged to score past David Martin with a tremendous solo effort.

Both sides battled on for what was left of the game but the score remained the same at 1-1.

Am I disappointed at the result? Yes. Am I worried? No. The team today didn’t really set the world on fire by any means of the imagination, but I know that the lads that we have now got are the making of a great side that I am sure will do what is needed when the new season starts.

Stuart has brought in a combination of youth and some older heads to build an excellent core of players and new signings such as Julien Hornuss and Allan Smart have already started to show that they will help make the difference when the time is right!

Roll on the start of the season, when we will be able to see The Dons play for real and start their campaign to get us back on the road to the good times once again!

Come on you Dons!

This game was a Testimonial for Bedford Towns Eddie Lawley who appeared to enjoy himself tonight. He got a huge cheer from the Bedford fans when he left the pitch. The game was also in memory of Steven Searle who joined the Eagles at the same time as Eddie Lawley, but sadly died in a car crash. A collection was made at half time which will go to benefit the Children at Milton Keynes Hospital, a charity which Steven Searle’s parents set up.

Report by Paul wright

MK DONS 0 – GLENTORAN 1

A small home crowd saw the Dons put on a pretty terrible display today, which ended with a dismal 0-1 defeat. The players and coaching staff we treated to shouts of disappointment as they left the field. The Glentoran side on the other hand, were applauded off the pitch by the home crowd.

It didn’t start off all that bad with Gareth Edds making some good runs down the right and getting crosses into the Glentoran penalty area. But then Stuart switched Gareth to left back just after about 15 minutes, leaving the right side wide open, and from there the lads on the pitch looked lost.

A messy defence and bad clearing by David Martin saw the Glens score in the first half. Only Gary Smith looking strong in midfield and creating a few chances gave the home crowd something to cheer about and Allan Smart was also working well up front. Stuart made another switch around with the lads on the pitch but this seemed to hinder matters rather than help. Half time came we hoped for much better in the second half.

First half verdict – Noting to cheer about!

Stuart made some changes in the second half bringing on Malvin Kamara, Dean Lewington, Shola Oyedele and trialist Paul Harries. Things started off brighter with Paul making some good runs at the Glentoran defence and Kamara showing his skills down the right.

Unfortunately for Paul Harries his leg cramped up and he was unable to continue the second half and he came off only after about 10 minutes of play to be replaced by Jason Puncheon.

Not long after this there was an incident between Ben Chorley and one of the Glentoran players where it looked as though the Glentoran player took a swipe a Ben, who then retaliated and was then subsequently sent off. The referee certainly made a hash of things and did not even caution the Glentoran player for the first offence!

The MK Dons never really settled after this and it was Glentoran who were more positive and had control of the game. Even Mark Williams got rattled and kicked out at one of the Glens. This didn’t make him very popular with the Glens fans after this who booed him for the rest of the game.

Jamie Mackie was then brought on but didn’t really get the service and never looked like getting his first goal for the club.

Stuart then brought on Nathan Koo-Boothe who played as a striker! But nothing was really working for Stuart today.

The game finished with the Glentoran fans jubilant and the Dons fans left wondering.

Stuart said after the game “We can take a lot from this game, it wasn’t a league match and we haven’t lost any points. We just know now what not to do for the next game!”

Overall match verdict – Poor.

Ben Harding is continuing to show his qualities on the field with 2 more goals in a 4-0 victory over FC Haukar. This was the second game of three for the Dons over in Iceland who have not lost any of there pre-season games so far.

The score was goalless at half time with both sides defending strongly. But after the break both sides made wholesale substitutions. The Dons changed seven players and Haukar changed their entire team. Due to the rules on substitutions for pre-season games changing yesterday from just 6 subs to unlimited, it could be that this was the first game to be played under the new rules.

All the goals came in the second half with Gary Smith and Dean Lewington scoring the other two. Other chances fell to Allan Smart and Ben Chorley and Luarent Herve played for the first time with the Dons to show some very good ball control after being rested for the first couple of pre-season games due to a leg injury.

Also in a strange twist of fate our team played against Luke Wildy who is currently on loan to FC Haukar from the Dons. Luke has scored three goals in four games for the Icelandic team.

So far the Dons are undefeated in there Icelandic tour. They play a select team of FC Haukar and FC FH players tomorrow. Lets hope they keep the good run going.

Come On You Dons!

A Great Day Out At Willen Road.

The Milton Keynes Dons gave a glimpse of what they are capable of today with a solid performance and a comfortable 3-0 win against Newport Pagnell.

Newport Pagnell Town FC was founded in 1963 playing their football at Bury Field Common. Since then they have gone from strength to strength and now play in the United Counties League at Willen Road Sports Ground.

They are one of the strongest teams within the area and have built up an extensive nursery, youth, girls and ladies section as well as the first team squad.

Upon arrival at the ground we were greeted with warm and friendly smiles and directed to the car park capable of holding many cars for such an event. We were shown the way to the ground and then the small clubhouse. All the staff were very helpful and we soon settled in to watch the Dons first game since the end of last season.

The supporters from both sides mixed well and there was a lovely attitude shown by all at the game today. The sun was out, slight breeze with the smell of cooking burgers floating on the air. Newport had done a superb job here, catering for all needs. Oh and the beer was good as well!

Soon both teams took to the field and the Dons looked great in their new kit with the Team sponsors Marshalls across the front of their shirts, minus the new logo due to the kit only arriving from Italy yesterday. There were also no names on the back but at least the numbers were on so we could soon work out who the new boys were. Ben Chorley had been made captain for this game in the absence of an injured Mark Williams.

The teams lined up for their group photo’s and then posed together which was nice to see. Then they took their positions ready for the kick-off.

Newport Pagnell took the game to the Dons straight away on a hard and uneven pitch and made it hard for the visitors to settle in. Gary Smith took a while to adjust to the lay of the land, with the ball bouncing up around his legs a few times. But it wasn’t long before the Dons took hold and threatened the goal at the other end with Wade Small testing the home side keeper.

Small threatened a couple of more times after that before running onto a perfect pass from Ben Harding to score the first goal for the Dons since the exit from admin ( 33 minutes). Well done Wade.

The Dons started to look very commanding after this with the back four looking solid with very confident David Martin commanding them from the back. Leon Crooks in particular looked very good on the ball. Nathan Koo-Boothe had an impressive game showing that our extra height at the back is paying dividends.

“Chopper” Chorley showed his determination throughout the first half controlling the team on the field. Wade small was full of running and looks a good prospect for the goal tally this year. Jamie Mackie was desperate for his first goal and ran after everything, getting several shots on target, the post denying him again!

Gareth Edds played very well and looks to be another very good signing by Stewart Murdock. Richard Harris (Ex Wycombe), one of our trialists, was on display in the first half. he looked strong but didn’t really make a big impact.

All in all, the first half was comfortable for the Dons.. Both sides played well with the Dons edging closer to a second, but they went in at half time with the score still at 1-0 to the Dons.

At half time we followed our noses to the burger stall and had a quick drink within the friendly atmosphere of the sports ground before returning just in time to see the teams kick-off for the second half. Oh, we did catch the cheer leaders as well which were well worth a mention. Well done girls!

After the break Newport showed again why they are one of the best non-league sides in the area, with several players looking very sharp on the ball. The player to watch out for from Newport Pagnell was Tyrone Taylor who looked very quick and nimble and, if it had not been for solid defending by our back four he could have caused a bit of trouble.

Stuart Murdoch brought on Dean Lewington, Steve palmer, Alan Smart, Thomas Carter, Malvin Kamara, Shoyla Oyedele and Alan Smart for the second half and they soon settled in to the game.

Steve Palmer took the captains armband and showed his commanding qualities on the field. Malvin looked very quick and threatening. Dean looked solid and made quite a few runs up front to cause trouble. Carter showed why he has risen up through to make the first team. And Shoyla gave a positive account of himself.

Alan Smart (Ex-Watford) looked very promising. He ran for everything, held the ball up well, played some lovely through balls and knock downs, and had a shot hit the post. Overall a very good prospect for the club!

Ben Harding stayed on the pitch for the whole game. He had an excellent match today, which was topped with a 59^th minute goal. He took on a couple of Newport’s defenders before driving his shot home to take the Dons into a 2-0 lead.

The dons continued to push on with Mackie, Smart and Leon Crooks threatening to score, but it was Kamara who latched onto a defensive mistake to go past the keeper and slot his shot home to finish the scoring at 3-0 to the Dons.

Overall today we saw a positive performance from the Dons providing good entertainment and a final result that we expected to see. Newport Pagnell Town FC battled well and did nothing to harm their reputation.

Website man of the match: Ben Harding

The supporters club would like to thank Geoff Cardno, NPTFC Chairman and all the players and staff for a great start to the pre-season games. We hope that this fixture can become a regular event.

All proceeds from today’s game go to Newport Pagnell Town FC and we hope that this will help them to continue building on the success that they have achieved since 1963.

Come on You Dons!

Report by Paul Wright