Dons through to next round…

AFC Wimbledon 2-2 Southend (Dons win 4-2 on penalties)

Despite the Dons’ recent poor home form some 1,495 brave souls felt optimistic enough to make their way to the Meadow of Kings for this Paint Pot fixture and were ultimately rewarded with a first competitive home victory of the season.

Neal Ardley made the maximum permissible number of changes, with Jake Nicholson, Harry Pell, Mark Phillips, Tom Beere and Adebayo Azeez all handed the opportunity to stake a claim for a first team place.

The Dons had to overcome adversity to do it though after battling against a strong Southend side in the mood for revenge after their recent League reverse in addition to an unforgiving referee in Charles Breakspear. The Dons also had the worst possible start falling behind early on with a goal from spritely Jack Payne after just 5 minutes after Barrett was beaten on the Dons’ left. The Dons back four and Barrett and Harrison in particular struggled to cope with Southend’s front two.

KSL got the Dons back in the game with an equaliser 10 minutes later with a strike from a well worked corner routine having won the corner himself and treated fans to his acrobatic goal celebration. But, having got back on terms, the Dons were handed a numerical disadvantage when referee Breakspear decided to give Harry Pell a straight red card for what was a little bit of a rash tackle, although with limited contact which the Southend player made the most of, where perhaps a yellow would have sufficed As well as a giving the Dons an up hill task on the night, this was a disaster for Pell who after losing his place in the side following loss of form earlier in the year could do with game time in matches like this to challenge for a first team place but has again shown that he needs to address his discipline as well as his inconsistent form if he wants to break back into the first team. He picked up a booking after only a few seconds of coming on against Hartlepool last week and will now be suspended for the Dons upcoming fixtures after this straight red.

Breakspear then proceeded to further endear himself to the Dons faithful by inexplicably brandishing yellow cards to Azeez for being hacked down and to Phillips for a perfectly good tackle before Phillips then cleared off the line to keep the 10-man Dons level at half time.

Dons youth product Ben Harrison came on for his debut at half time replacing Kennedy for a bit of a baptism of fire for the 17-year-old particularly with Southend looking threatening particularly down the right flank. And the Dons conceded early in the second half once again after Breakspear contrived to turn another 50:50 ball into a yellow card and a goal against the Dons through the award of a soft free kick and booking, although the Dons were culpable of being caught flat-footed for the free kick and failed to close down Payne’s shot.

The Dons made changes on the hour mark with KSL, who once again looked good going forward but faded second half, and Rigg coming off for Bulman and Tubbs. Azeez then had a rare chance having been put through by Nicholson but it looked like the Dons were going out with Southend on top and Shea forced to make a number of saves to keep the Dons in contention. Time was ebbing away when in the 88th minute Adam Barrett hit a piledriver of an equaliser from 30 yards out against his former club to level for the 10-man Dons and send the game straight to penalties.

Jake Nicholson stepped up to tuck away the opening penalty and then Danny Bulman put the Dons in front in the shoot-out after Barnard saw his effort tipped onto the post by Shea. Tom Beere kept the Dons in front and, after a decisive second penalty save by Shea who should also be credited for an excellent 90 minutes keeping the Dons in the game on numerous occasions, Matt Tubbs sent the Dons through to the second round of this competition for the first time in 3 years. One wonders whether the Kingsmeadow curse has now been broken.

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