Unfortunately a bit more of a brief thread today for this one, which is a pity as our visit to London and to Plough Lane (or the Cherry Red Records Stadium as it is now known) is a bit of a rarity for us Bluebirds, both under the current AFC Wimbledon guise of our hosts and also even their forefathers Wimbledon FC. With the shared history of one particular owner between our clubs it could have been a very interesting thread indeed, but alas, just like the ‘Dons own story, real life gets in the way of the dream and things don’t always go to plan. On the subject of things going to plan however, I think it is fair to say that Saturday’s performance v Rotherham was pretty much planned and executed almost to perfection. Whilst I wasn’t there to witness it in person, I have to say our 2nd goal was a thing of beauty and whilst I (and many other fans) may wax lyrical about the build up and finish, it seems BBM was even more effusive about our 3rd goal which was finished via tap in for our new talisman Rubin Colwill. With the plan for hard work, high press and determination to get the ball back ASAP in dangerous areas being brought to life right before our eyes I can see why it pleased our gaffer so much. Onto tonight’s game though and this one will again no doubt be more of a test in a small, packed and noisy stadium where the home fans are used to seeing their own team triumph more often than not – will our team still be uneaten come full time, I don’t know… I just hope we can make good use of all the things that we find out there on the pitch! Who Are You? As we know, our hosts have had an incredibly tumultuous history, from fairytale FA Cup final wins through to the club pretty much folding and starting again in the wake of the MK Dons saga. With ground moves/shares thrown into the mix too (some of which have their own controversy behind them – but that could be a whole thread to itself) it’s no exaggeration to state that our hosts have absolutely been on a rollercoaster ride throughout their club’s history. There aren’t many faces I recognise in the Wimbledon squad but the brilliantly named Myles Hippolyte is one I do recognise, with the Ghanaian winger being a signing from Stockport County back in May last year. Welshman Joe Lewis (ex-Junior Jack) seems to be cementing more of a place for himself in the team now, also having joined via Stockport, whilst current top scorer Matty Stevens (formerly of Forest Green) is continuing his good form with 2 goals so far this season to go on top of the 17 league goals he scored in League 2 last term. Gaffer Johnny Jackson (Ex-Spurs & Charlton predominantly) has done a remarkable job with the ‘Dons, having guided them to promotion from League 2 in a relatively short manner (he took up the role in May 2022) and his 67 wins in 174 games gives him a 38.5% win ratio with Wimbledon – not bad for a team with a budget much, much smaller than many of their rivals. First And Last So, this depends on which incarnation of our opponents you wish to look at… Based on the current AFC Wimbledon, we actually only have 1 previous meeting which was a league cup game 10 years ago which finished in a 1-0 win for the Bluebirds at the CCS. That game was decided by a Craig Noone free-kick. Sadly my quick searches have failed to find any highlights from that game. If however, we consider their original forefathers, then our 1st ever game against them was back in December 1984, a game that finished in a 3-1 defeat for the Bluebirds at Ninian Park in a 2nd Division match. That season saw the Bluebirds relegated to Division 3 (where we once again find ourselves) with our hosts finishing safely in a mid-table 12th position. Just as a contrast to where we find ourselves now though (one for the doom mongers to consider when they say last season was our worst ever), our average attendance in that relegation season was just 4,372, with the highest gate being against the ‘mighty’ Leeds Utd at just 6,893 (quite how the crowd could have been that low I have no idea as every Leeds fan will tell you they take thousands wherever they go!). Our lowest attendance that season was a mere 2,564 v Middlesborough. The game against the ‘Dons saw Phil Dwyer score City’s only goal in front of 2,976 fans. Form We go into this one still undefeated and on a bit of a high following our 3-0 demolition of Rotherham on Saturday. As much as we still feel a little uneasy across the backline it should be noted that the only goal conceded in the league this season was that opening day “soft” penalty against Peterborough so we clearly can’t be too weak back there (granted dropping Chambers appeared to make things far more solid). Our hosts though are also on a high having gained promotion last season via the play-offs somewhat unexpectedly and starting this term with just 1 unfortunate defeat away at Luton on the opening day when an own goal undid a very solid display against everyone’s favourites for the divisional title. They also come into this one off the back of a very good win on the road v Reading, so I’m pretty sure we can expect a stern challenge on their own patch. On The Pitch We saw BBM’s ruthless side come out on the weekend with captain Callum Chambers dropped to the bench in favour of a Will Fish/Dylan Lawlor CB pairing and given the success of that I would imagine we’ll see it repeated here. As predicted, Dave Turnbull also got a start and didn’t let the team down so I really can’t see there being too many changes apart from Bagan coming back in (subject to fitness) to replace the unfortunate Dakarai Mafico who was deputising at the start of Saturday’s game in a fairly unfamiliar left back role and who had to be taken off before half time to save him from a potential red card occurring (not the first time we have seen BBM haul a player off to avoid such a scenario). As torrid a time as Mafico had hopes remain very high for the youngster at City and he will no doubt benefit from the experience in the longer run. Predicted Starting 11 Trott Bagan Fish Lawlor Kpakio Wintle Ashford Colwill (R) Turnbull Tanner Salech The Odds Home – 23/10 Draw – 12/5 Away – 11/10 So, even with us struggling against Port Vale in our only away game so far this season the bookies still appear to fancy us for this one… wonder what our resident punter makes of this one? C’mon The City!!!!
And you said you wouldn't have time!!! Another masterpiece BB. Half of our side from that game 10 years ago would be very useful squad members today. And 4 wouldn't. I only recognise Akinfenwa and ex Bluebird (although he never played a first team game for us) Jonathan Meades from their team.
As you guys may have guessed, I decided this was more interesting and more urgent than my actual paid employment this morning!! Masky - I hope you don't mind but I'm printing your message above out - I never thought I'd see the day I could teach you anything (good or bad), I feel duly honoured and humbled.
Great stuff again Brizzo - especially for a shortened version. We're grateful for your time and glad you've got "paid employment". For those of us who no longer do and have given work the elbow...........
A bit of consistency. Surprised Turnbull has been rested (I hope he wasn't 'dropped'). He was instrumental on Saturday. Im sure some rotation will be needed in a long season. Especially for most of the youngsters. Tough on Mafico. Given the number of subs we can carry, Barry should have kept him in the squad for his confidence.
Very surprised at Turnbull's exclusion but a good opportunity for young Joel again. Maybe BBM thinks additional legs/energy is the order of the day to begin with??
Just wasted 15 minutes of my life trying to find radio London, so I could listen to the game. Can't find it on FM (out if area), DAB or Internet. Then found out that it's on freesat 718. Except I haven't got 718. 717, yes. 719, yes. 718, NO!!!!!!.
Decent start TBF. Dominating possession again and appear to be coping with some of the physical stuff. We are taking one or two touches too many around the box though when in promising positions so no end product yet.
Like Saturday, we just need a goal. The good thing is in the games we've had this season, the team keeps playing. Confidence in their game plan.
Thought the ref was having a decent game to begin with but the last 20 minutes he seemed to decide we were getting on top too much so he thought he'd give Wimbledon a helping hand... Be interesting to see if Salech stays on much longer, he was definitely getting frustrated again with the treatment he was having dished out to him as well as the lack of service from our side.
That may have been a handball/good penalty shout for us there??? They've also clearly been told to get stuck in and be more physical now. We could end up losing this the way it's going.
A win in spite of a hapless and hopeless Robinson. Superb save by Trott at the death We’re a hard watch away with so little pace on the break but a clean sheet and 3 points ps Why did the ref not allow play on in last move with their keeper inside our penalty area
We were fortunate to win it at the death there. I really felt Wimbledon were finishing the stronger but fair play to the boys, they kept going... Good save by Trott to help us keep all 3 points right at the very end. Subs combining to win it for us too... Scruffy goal but they all count. Gutted Stevenage turned it around at Port Vale but our unbeaten run continues on... Well done BBM and the team
I felt we slowed things down too much and turned backwards too often when there appeared to be space to exploit on the break/in the transition. Kpakio started really brightly going forward but seemed to regress more and more the longer the game went on. Losing Tanner was a blow but Willock did ok after coming on, though end product was still an issue. Chambers did well in his cameo... Probably wasn't on long enough to be tested too much
