Paul Warne reflected that MK Dons came up short against Walsall via a combination of a poor first half and bad luck going forward.
The Dons’ boss spoke after Charlie Lakin’s deflected strike won Walsall the game at Stadium MK, with the result seeing Warne lose a league game as MK Dons boss for the first time.
Speaking to the media afterwards, Warne said he felt the team improved in the second half after the first 45, but felt it ended up being one of those days where the Dons just couldn’t score.
He said, “I think my opinion is probably the same as everyone who was in the stadium. I thought first half, we were poor and weren’t really at the races. I don’t think we started well while they started excellent. We didn’t respond to that really and didn’t have much control in the first half, although Craig only made one save.
“We grew into it a little bit then at half-time, we tried to change it a little bit and get our wide players to stay high and wide, and apart from conceding that chance, I really liked it. I know its not a brilliant thing to say when you’ve lost the game but I really liked how we played. We put lots of crosses in. But I didn’t like that the fact we couldn’t finish any of them. It felt like one of those days where we could be out there forever and just wouldn’t score.”
He further said, “Disappointed with the first half, loved the second, but sometimes its easier to play when you’re behind. We need to play fearlessly like that from the outset.
“We’ll have a good week this week to build up for Grimsby, but disappointed. I thought we’d done enough to at least get a point, but sometimes you don’t.”
The winning goal for Walsall came moments after Callum Paterson missed a chance to make it 1-0 to MK Dons with their first major opportunity, in a move that Warne said was reflective of the game as a whole.
He said, “It probably sums us up today that you didn’t get the luck to win football games. We weren’t as clean as we should be at the top of the pitch and a little unlucky at the back of the pitch. After that, for the next 40 minutes, I was pleased with what the lads tried to do.”
Having suffered the first League Two defeat of the new campaign, Warne added that the next thing to focus on will be the way the team recalibrates to move on from the disappointment.
He said, “Weirdly our best chances didn’t hit the target, which sounds a bit surreal. But I don’t presume under any circumstances we’re going to have a season without defeats or bad performances. If we’d lost to one of the teams in the top 6 playing the way we did when I know we can be better, it’s not the worst, but I also feel by losing the game, it focuses everyone’s mind a little bit, and we can build for another tough game next week.”
The game was the Dons’ last before transfer deadline day, which happens today (01/09). Warne spoke before MK Dons confirmed the signing of Kane Wilson, who was confirmed as a new signing by the club yesterday, but said he was expecting a busy day.
He said, “I expect to get one or two in, as every manager will say up and down the country, and possibly lose one or two. If we didn’t do any more business, I know I’ve got more than enough in the dressing room to be competitive and have a right go, but with everyone, you keep improving. Today is a proving point that we can’t sit on our laurels and collectively haven’t got everything sussed yet. If we can improve, we’ll try to.
“This window seems to have gone on forever. Started in May, now virtually September, but all the fun is in the last 24-48 hours. I will definitely get offered players I would’ve took in a heartbeat.”
Red Bull ended their podium drought as Max Verstappen finished second at the Dutch Grand Prix.
At his home race at the Zandvoort track on the Dutch coast, Verstappen was on course to turn third on the grid to third in the race, when he was elevated to second after McLaren’s Lando Norris suffered a late breakdown.
The podium was Verstappen’s first since taking a second at the Canadian Grand Prix in June.
Verstappen’s teammate Yuki Tsunoda would finish 9th in the race, taking with it his first points finish since the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix in Italy back in May.
The Dutch Grand Prix would see a double representation for Red Bull’s F1 operations on the podium, however, with junior team Racing Bulls taking their first podium since 2021 as Isack Hadjar took his first podium in F1.
With 15 races of the 2025 F1 season done, Verstappen remains third in the standings with 205 points. He is 21 clear of 4th place George Russell and 70 points behind second place Norris. Meanwhile, Tsunoda is 19th in the standings, having picked up 12 points.
In the Constructor’s Championship, the Milton Keynes-based Red Bull team sits in 4th place. With 214 points on the board, they are 34 points behind Mercedes and 46 points behind Ferrari in the fight for second place in the championship.
A month on from F1’s last race, Red Bull were hoping for something better than a low-key race in Hungary where they did not challenge for the podium.
Verstappen made a flying start from third, taking second away from Norris despite almost losing the car on a sandy part of the track. However, Norris was able to retake the position on lap 9, and quickly speed away.
Meanwhile, Tsunoda spent the early period of his race holding off the Mercedes of Andrea Kimi Antonelli, having got ahead on the original start.
The situation changed on lap 23 when Lewis Hamilton crashed his Ferrari, bringing out a safety car. Both drivers opted to pit, with Verstappen remaining third and Tsunoda dropping down the order as others stayed out.
Tsunoda gained places after a collision left Carlos Sainz and Liam Lawson with punctures, relegating both to the back, but he remained in the midfield pack hoping for a way to the points, while Verstappen was only able to keep himself in third.
It had looked as though the situation would stay the same for both drivers until the race made another dramatic change on lap 53, when a collision between Antonelli and Charles Leclerc left the latter’s Ferrari car broken by the side of the track, triggering a second safety car.
Both would pit again, although Tsunoda reported a technical malfunction with his throttle that was limiting his race. The Japanese driver was however able to get around this and continue.
Tsunoda made a fine move on Gabriel Bortoleto’s Sauber as he hoped to try and make a fight to get into the points. But it looked as though he was going to come up short when on lap 65, the safety car was deployed again as an oil leak saw Norris’ car break down.
That breakdown had the further effect of promoting Verstappen to second, with the Dutchman trying but ultimately coming up short in attempts to try and prize the win from race leader Oscar Piastri in the McLaren.
Piastri would ultimately eke out a gap over 3 laps of green flag running at the end, closing out the success. Verstappen would settle for second in behind.
Meanwhile, Tsunoda would get past Pierre Gasly on fading tyres after the restart and held off a challenge by Esteban Ocon to take 10th on the road. This became 9th in the final results when Antonelli was handed a 15 second time penalty for taking out Leclerc and then speeding in the pit lane, allowing him to end his points drought.
The F1 paddock has a quick turnaround after the Dutch Grand Prix, with the field heading to Monza for the Italian Grand Prix next weekend.
Northampton Town’s scheduled match against Reading has been postponed due to international call-ups.
The Cobblers were originally scheduled to play Reading at the Select Car Leasing Stadium in a 3pm kick-off next Saturday (06/09).
However, the postponement has been requested due to international call-ups and has been granted, with the game now to be rescheduled for an undisclosed future date.
Northampton advised fans in a statement to remain in contact over confirmation for the fixture’s rescheduling.
They said, “Supporters who purchased tickets for the original game are asked to keep those tickets safe as they will be valid for the rearranged date. Refund details for anyone who cannot make the new date will be confirmed when that new date is announced.”
MK Dons suffered their first defeat in League 2 this season after losing to Walsall 1-0 at Stadium MK.
Charlie Lakin’s deflected goal in the opening stages of the second half was the only strike of the contest, with the Dons unable to take the opportunities that came their way in the contest.
The result meant a first defeat in league action for the Dons both in the new season and under Paul Warne, who had been unbeaten in his first 9 matches since taking charge at the club in April.
The last game of August saw the Dons looking to maintain their unbeaten start, as they faced another side to have won 3 of their first 5 outings in the form of Walsall, who were chasing their first back-to-back wins of the new campaign.
Warne’s selection included a debut for new signing Jon Mellish, who joined on loan from Wigan earlier in the week.
Although the Dons had been hoping to pick up where they left off after scoring 5 in their last home match, it was Walsall who settled faster, with the visitors looking bright in the early stages.
Rushian Hepburn-Murphy had a shot blocked, but the visitors were posing questions of the Dons’ defence, with Daniel Kanu and Lakin both having strikes blocked.
The best chance of the opening stages came on a Walsall counter. Kanu lead the charge at speed before his cross was intercepted by Jack Sanders. His clearance fell for Lakin, however, and the Walsall man hit a crisp first-time strike well stopped by Craig MacGillivray.
Lakin and Aden Flint would both miss the target with opportunities, but Walsall’s momentum was checked when defender Evan Weir had to be substituted due to an injury.
As they adjusted, the Dons began to offer a little more going forward, with Callum Paterson seeing an effort drift wide before Sanders ballooned an effort off target in stoppage time.
While the Dons had in truth not offered much before the break, they missed a great chance to open the scoring minutes after the break. Sanders’ flick-on at a free-kick fell kindly for Paterson, who had broke free from the away defensive line only to place an effort wide when one-on-one with the keeper.
Things got worse for the Dons a few moments later when they fell behind. A misplaced pass by Alex Gilbey on the edge of the Walsall box was pushed forward by the visitors, who committed numbers forward. Aaron Pressley’s lay-off fell kindly for Lakin in space, with his strike taking a big deflection that wrong-footed MacGillivray and landed in the bottom corner to put the West Midlanders in front.
The Dons attempted some moves to find their way back on level terms, with Nathaniel Mendez-Laing missing the target from a routine before Will Collar’s header was denied by Myles Roberts.
MK Dons then felt Walsall should’ve been reduced to ten men when the already booked Vincent Harper committed another foul, with the home crowd unimpressed when Harper was let off with an extended warning. Harper would duly be withdrawn a few moments later.
Perhaps the Dons’ best chance for an equaliser came with just under 20 minutes to go. Gilbey had initially been forced wide when on for a strike, but his cross picked out Mendez-Laing, whose first time drive was well stopped by Roberts. The keeper would also hold onto a follow-up header by Luke Offord.
MK Dons tried to keep on pressing, with a deflected Dan Crowley free-kick held by Roberts as the visitors tried to hang on.
Walsall would have a brief moment of respite with a few corners, although they were unable to find a second goal.
In the final minute of the 90, home substitute Jonathan Leko nearly got an equaliser single handedly with a driving run to the box that forced a save from Roberts. Crowley’s attempt at a rebound saw him fail to connect with one attempt before a second was blocked by a defender.
But the home side soon ran out of steam, creating only a few half-chances in stoppage time as their hopes of a point ultimately disappeared.
MK Dons: MacGillivray – Offord (Lemonheigh-Evans 88), Ekpiteta, Sanders, Mellish (Leko 84) – Collar (Crowley 70), Kelly, Gilbey – Mendez-Laing, Paterson, Hepburn-Murphy (Nemane 70)
Subs not used: Trueman, Thompson, Waller
Booked: Offord, Paterson
Walsall: Roberts – Burke, Flint, Weir (Farquharson 27) – Barrett, Jellis (Finnigan 45), Warrington (Comley 78), Lakin, Harper (Clarke 61) – Pressley, Kanu (Adomah 78)
Subs not used: Hornby, Matt
Booked: Harper
Tahith Chong has left Luton Town after signing a deal to join Championship outfit Sheffield United.
The 25-year-old signed for the Blades on an undisclosed fee, with Chong signing a four year contract at Bramall Lane up until the summer of 2029.
The deal sees Chong leave Luton after two years contracted to the club. He made 69 appearances for Luton in two years with the club after joining the Hatters from Birmingham City.
In his time with the club, he scored 7 times at the club, including 4 in the Premier League during Luton’s stint there in the 2023/24 season.
In a brief statement, Luton Town said, “Tahith leaves with our thanks for his service and best wishes of all at the Club for his future career.”
Chong told the official Sheffield United website that he was delighted to make the move to South Yorkshire.
He said, “I am very happy that this was done so quickly and that I’m here now.
“I’ll be honest, as I’m speaking right now, it has been 48 hours or so, so everything has moved very quickly, and that’s compliments to the club as well to get everything sorted out so quick.
“When you think of Sheffield United, you think of a big club and as soon as I heard, I was obviously very interested and very keen to sign.
“I’ve had two years at Luton, had some ups and downs, but now 100 per cent ready for a fresh start.”
