AFC Wimbledon v Ipswich Town
Tuesday 25th January 2022– 19:45
Plough Lane
Pre Match Thoughts - Mike
Winning Ugly The Key........
Town continued their decent start under new Manager Kieran McKenna with a third win in Four as a difficult Accrington Stanley side were finally put away after what in fairness had been a difficult First half for Town in a game which in truth we just had to win, by the time the final whistle sounded Town had done enough to deserve the points in what was a very hard fought and at times ugly game to watch.
I cannot remember too many times in the recent past where Town have come from behind to win, nor can I remember having an awful lot of luck against Teams who like to play the Accrington way, pretty it ain't and it is most definitely not easy to play against, they do what they do and they do it well, after all the Stanley had been on a decent run of results against some of the top sides in the division so Town can be pleased with the level of resolve they showed and their battling qualities showed through on a day when we were most certainly not at our best but it is those results on days like that which could prove vital come May.
With the likes of Aluko, Evans, Penney & Norwood all missing from the starting line up it gave others a chance to shine and stake their claim to be in that Eleven, I thought KVY did ok after a difficult opening Half Hour, offensively he is a match for Penney for sure but defending I just feel more comfortable with Penney in that role. With Lee Evans picking up an injury in the warm up it gave Tom Carroll another chance to show us what he can do and despite some praise from certain quarters in commentary etc I just don't rate the guy at all, that may sound harsh but for me he is lightweight, cannot pass, rarely goes forward and basically for large swathes of the game you forget he is even involved, with Tyreeq Bakinson making an earlier that anticipated debut it could be we don't get the pleasure of Carroll in the starting line up too much more. Bakinson was steady and showed some decent touches, always trying to get involved and looking for the ball he stood out in that respect and I am sure once he settles in properly he will be an asset to the Town engine room.
There is no doubt that the real stars of the show for Town were the other Two to return to the starting line up, Bersant Celina & Conor Chaplin won the game for Town without doubt, both had a major part to play in the goals with Celina's pinpoint pass setting up Wes Burns to get us back level and Conor Chaplin's fine strike after the break proving to be the winner but it was far more than that, I thought they both had excellent games throughout, I have maintained that for me Chaplin is the most gifted player at the club and was playing really well when the genius that Cook is decided to drop him without explanation, with McKenna sticking with those that had the shirts upon his arrival Chaplin has had to bide his time and be patient but it came good Saturday as he grabbed his chance with both hands and looks a likely starter from here on in. Celina is an enigma, for me he is all too often a luxury which we can ill afford to carry but there is no doubt when on form he is superb and Saturday was one of those days, his work rate was far better than it often is and his quality shone through big time, there is no doubt playing like that he will be hard to drop so it's down to Bersant, consistency is the key.
I must admit the defence still worries me at times, all too often Accrington got through us at ease in that opening Forty Five minutes and but for the Woodwork saving us Twice they could have been out of sight by Half Time, thankfully for once we got a bit of the rub of the Green but we need to be defending certain situations much better, individually I don't really have a major issue with anyone although I am still of the opinion Luke Woolfenden should be better and that is despite improved performances of late, as individuals George Edmundson & Janoi Donacien both do pretty well for the most part, it is as a unit that our defence is not clicking and is certainly not as solid as it should be, I believe another top CB in alongside Edmundson is the way to go and a more experienced LB is another area I would be looking at if I am honest, Penney is ok if unspectacular and KVY can do a job there but I just feel we could do better, with the window fast coming to a close our season could hinge on what if anything we do with this defence.
So Nine points from Twelve is good in anyone's book and Kieran McKenna must be quietly pleased with that return from his opening Four games, if we can maintain that for the remaining games we will be where we want to be, as has already been said several times, the rest of January & February are key, games with AFC Wimbledon, Gillingham, Doncaster, Burton Albion, Cheltenham & Morecambe are without question all winnable, throw in Sheffield Wednesday & MK Dons for good measure and we have a real chance of gaining a good haul of points, we are good enough, we just have to believe in ourselves more and keep the consistency level up. This season is far from over, it's very much in our hands.
I started off by talking about teams who like to play a certain way as Accrington did last weekend so who better to follow them than the Crazy gang from Wimbledon, of course this is not the crazy gang as we all remember it and I don't even know if they still adopt that rugged style of play but I doubt also that we are in for an evening of silky, free flowing Football. I think we can prepare ourselves for another tough and brutal battle as they battle for much needed points in their quest for survival.
The Dons currently find themselves Nineteenth in the Division and just a solitary point above the drop zone although they do have a couple of games in hand on some teams around them, current form has been poor with no win in Six League outings and very few goals scored either, they also suffered an FA Cup defeat to non League Boreham Wood during the current poor run, they are team in trouble and not playing well, they are shot shy and everything points to them being "there for the taking" so Town must approach this with a positive attitude and the points will be there for us.
I say this every week, no game is easy but if we are to prove ourselves to be genuine contenders for a late surge into the play offs then this has to be a Town win, no excuses or hard luck stories here, our attacking play must surely be enough to get the job done and I think we will. I see McKenna's team taking us to Twelve from Fifteen which will do very nicely indeed so it's unsurprisingly a Town win for me, maybe by a couple of goals, that will set us up nicely for a Massive February. Keep the Faith and belief, it can be done. COYB'S
The Opposition – AFC Wimbledon
On 28 May 2002, the Football Association backed a 2–1 decision by the three-man independent, arbitration commission they had appointed to allow Wimbledon F.C. to relocate north to the new town of Milton Keynes in Buckinghamshire; a decision influenced, among other factors, by claims from Wimbledon chairman Charles Koppel that such a move was necessary in order to prevent the club from going bankrupt. The F.A. forbade any right of appeal against the decision.
Although the absence of a ground in Milton Keynes meeting Football League criteria meant that the club were unable to physically move for over a year, major organised protests at the decision continued to be held by Wimbledon's traditional local support and a boycott of the club's home matches at Selhurst Park meant attendances dwindled immediately.
Following the F.A.'s announcement of their decision, a group of Wimbledon supporters led by Kris Stewart and fellow founding members Marc Jones and Trevor Williams met in The Fox and Grapes pub on Wimbledon Common to plan what was to be done next as part of the protest. It was agreed that as there was no right of appeal, the only option was to start the club again from scratch. On 30 May 2002 the idea was put forward in a Wimbledon Independent Supporters' Association meeting to create a new community-based club named AFC Wimbledon and an appeal for funds was launched.
On 13 June 2002, a new manager, a playing strip and badge based on that of the original Wimbledon FC, and a stadium were unveiled to fans and the media at the packed-out Wimbledon Community Centre. In order to assemble a competitive team at very short notice, AFC Wimbledon held player trials on 29 June 2002 on Wimbledon Common, open to any unattached player who felt he was good enough to try out for the team. The event attracted 230 hopeful players, from whom the club's squad for their inaugural season was eventually chosen.
In the 2002–03 season, AFC Wimbledon competed in the Combined Counties League Premier Division under the management of former Wimbledon F.C. player Terry Eames, who was appointed on 13 June 2002. Their first ever game, a pre-season friendly against Sutton United on 10 July 2002, resulted in a 4–0 loss in front of a crowd of 4,657. At the end of their debut season, AFC Wimbledon finished third in the league and narrowly failed to win promotion to the Isthmian League First Division, despite a strong end to the season that involved winning their final 11 league fixtures.
In 2003–04, AFC Wimbledon won their first 21 league games before a 2–2 draw against Sandhurst Town on 10 January 2004, giving them 32 consecutive wins in league games over two seasons. Manager Terry Eames was suspended on 13 February 2004 and sacked five days later on the grounds of gross misconduct, after evidence was produced which showed him to have firstly made unauthorised and untrue representations to a number of the coaching staff, secondly, that he had falsely informed members of the coaching staff that the club had decided not to support his plans for youth football and required him to make immediate budgetary cut-backs and thirdly that he dispensed with the services of members of the coaching staff citing untrue reasons. Assistant manager Nick English took charge with immediate effect. The team went on to finish as champions of the Combined Counties League with an unbeaten record for the season of 42 wins and four draws.
Dave Anderson was appointed as new manager on 11 May 2004. Under his leadership AFC Wimbledon took their good form into the 2004–05 season during which they competed in the Isthmian League First Division — they remained top of the division for the duration of the season, and were convincing title-winners, sealing promotion to the League's Premier Division. Over the course of the season, AFC Wimbledon set a new record for the longest run of unbeaten league games at any level of senior football in the United Kingdom. The team remained unbeaten for 78 league matches between 22 February 2003 (a 2–0 defeat at home to Withdean 2000) and 4 December 2004 (a 2–0 defeat at Cray Wanderers).
The 2005–06 season proved far more competitive than previous seasons – as after winning their first few games, AFC Wimbledon found themselves struggling to remain in the play-off places. However, a 2–1 defeat at Fisher Athletic on 2 May 2006 prevented the club from achieving three back-to-back promotions.
Much of the 2006–07 season was overshadowed by the threat of a proposed 18-point deduction by the FA for the club's fielding of Jermaine Darlington who, it transpired, had not been registered correctly by the club and had therefore played in three games whilst still officially ineligible. However, this punishment was eventually reduced to a three-point deduction and a £400 fine on appeal, after the FA finally acknowledged that the club had made a simple administrative error. Although AFC Wimbledon did enough to qualify for the play-offs, they once again missed out on promotion, this time as a result of losing 1–0 to Bromley in the play-off semi-final on 1 May 2007. Manager Dave Anderson subsequently left the club by mutual consent on 2 May 2007.
Terry Brown was appointed as the new AFC Wimbledon manager on 15 May 2007. During 2007–08, he led the club to promotion to the Conference South in his first season in charge, a feat which predecessor Dave Anderson had proved unable to achieve, having lost two consecutive play-off final opportunities in the previous two seasons. The Dons made steady progress throughout the season, qualifying for the play-offs after finishing third in the League and going through to win the play-off final.
AFC Wimbledon spent most of the 2008–09 season near the top of the league table, eventually finishing as champions and earning promotion to the Conference Premier.
The 2009–10 season was the club's first in the Conference Premier. Overall the Dons finished eighth, 14 points short of the play-off zone. This was the first season in which the club had failed to make the top five in the league table.
In 2010–11 AFC Wimbledon finished as runners-up of the Conference Premier, qualifying for the play-offs and reaching the play-off final. In the play-off final at the City of Manchester Stadium on 21 May 2011, in front of a crowd of 18,195, AFC Wimbledon beat Luton Town 4–3 in a penalty shoot-out, after the match had ended 0–0 in extra time. The victory resulted in promotion to the Football League for the first time and represented the club's fifth promotion in nine years. The club's achievement of attaining League status after just nine seasons of existence is considered to be one of the fastest ascents for a new club since automatic promotion to the Football League first commenced in the 1980s. AFC Wimbledon also hold the record of being the first club to be formed in the 21st century to make it into the Football League, making them the youngest club in the Football League by some distance.
The 2011–12 season saw AFC Wimbledon's promotion to League Two. The team started the season well, winning seven out of their first 12 matches, but failed to keep the momentum going and had a poor run, eventually finishing the season ranking 16th, 10 points clear of the relegation zone.
The 2012–13 campaign marked the 10th anniversary of AFC Wimbledon's inaugural season. After an abysmal start to the season, manager Terry Brown was sacked on 19 September 2012 along with assistant manager Stuart Cash, with AFC Wimbledon sitting just above the relegation zone.
First team coach Simon Bassey took over as caretaker manager with immediate effect. Bassey was in charge just four matches, however, before former Wimbledon player Neal Ardley was appointed as Terry Brown's permanent replacement on 10 October 2012. The Dons secured their Football League status on the final day of the 2012–13 season, despite having started the day in the relegation zone.
In the 2013–14 season the club had a disappointing season overall, only managing to replicate the 20th placed league finish of the season before after the club were docked three points for the ineligible fielding of Jake Nicholson after failing to obtain international clearance for him after he joined from Scottish Championship side Greenock Morton on 19 February 2014.
The 2014–15 season saw AFC Wimbledon finished the season in a mediocre 15th place after a disappointing run of form saw them finish the season without a win in their last eight league fixtures.
The 2015–16 season was AFC Wimbledon's fifth consecutive season in League Two. Despite getting the season off to a mediocre start, the Dons finished the season strongly, winning seven out of their last 10 league matches to ensure that the club would confirm their highest ever League Two finish of seventh place and qualification to the 2016 Football League play-offs. They beat Accrington Stanley in the Semi’s and this win earned them a place in the play-off final at Wembley Stadium against Plymouth Argyle. The fixture was scheduled for 30 May 2016, exactly 14 years to the day since the club's foundation. AFC Wimbledon ultimately triumphed 2–0 on the day in front of a crowd of 57,956.
The 2016–17 season saw AFC Wimbledon compete in League One for the first time in their history. Promotion also placed AFC Wimbledon in the same division as Milton Keynes Dons, who had simultaneously been relegated from the Championship. This ensured the club would face Milton Keynes Dons for the first time at Kingsmeadow which they did on 14 March 2017, going on to triumph 2–0. The club ultimately finished 15th in the league, after a disappointing slump saw them win just five out of their last 22 league matches between January and April.
AFC Wimbledon made an equally slow start to the 2017–18 campaign, managing just five wins in their first 20 league matches between August and December. On 13 December 2017, the club received a further boost after being granted permission to begin work on constructing a new 11,000-seater stadium (which could be expanded to hold up to 20,000 in the future) on the site of Wimbledon Greyhound Stadium. The club was eventually able to secure another season in League One with a draw in their penultimate game, meaning that for the first time, AFC Wimbledon would be playing in a higher division than the Milton Keynes Dons, who were relegated that season.
AFC Wimbledon saw a disastrous start to the 2018–19 season, losing twelve of their first seventeen league games. Manager Neal Ardley departed the club by mutual agreement on 12 November 2018 after a tenure of 6 years, 1 month, 2 days, making him the longest serving manager to date. Ardley was replaced by Wally Downes. After being rooted to the bottom of the table for most of 2019, they lost only 1 of their last 12 league games to lift them out of the relegation zone, ultimately staying up on goal difference on the last day of the season after a 0–0 draw with already relegated Bradford City.
On 25 September 2019, Glyn Hodges took over the management of the first team on a temporary basis following the suspension of Wally Downes after being charged by the FA for betting misconduct.
The club was initially based at Kingsmeadow, a ground bought from and then shared with Isthmian League club Kingstonian F.C. until 2017, and with Chelsea F.C. Women from 2017. In November 2020, the club moved to Plough Lane, a new stadium on the site of the defunct Wimbledon Greyhound Stadium, only 250 yards away from the original Plough Lane, Wimbledon F.C.'s home until 1991. The new stadium has an initial capacity of 9,300, with the option of expansion to a maximum 20,000 at a later date.
On 30 January 2021, following the sacking of Glyn Hodges, Mark Robinson was appointed interim manager of Wimbledon after serving the club in various academy and coaching roles. On 17 February 2021, AFC Wimbledon announced the appointment of Robinson on a permanent basis.
Robinson turned the season around and the club avoided relegation on the second-last matchday.
Last season the Dons finished just outside the relegation zone in 19th place.
The Manager – Mark Robinson
Form Guide
AFC Wimbledon Last 5 Matches Currently in 19th place with 28 points
1 Jan Plymouth pp. AFC Wimbledon
11 Jan Milton Keynes 1 – 0 AFC Wimbledon
15 Jan AFC Wimbledon 0 - 0 Morecambe
18 Jan AFC Wimbledon 0 - 0 Portsmouth
22 Jan Burton Albion 1 - 1 AFC Wimbledon
Ipswich Last 5 Matches – Currently in 9th place with 38 points
29 Dec Ipswich Town 1 - 0 Wycombe
1 Jan Ipswich Town pp. Lincoln City
8 Jan Gillingham 0 - 4 Ipswich Town
15 Jan Bolton 2 - 0 Ipswich Town
22 Jan Ipswich Town 2 - 1 Accrington
Match Referee – Lee Swabey
AFC WIMBLEDON 0 IPSWICH TOWN 1
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Not sure what to make of the line up! 
