MK Dons Head Coach Scott Lindsey said he was left annoyed and disappointed by two defensive lapses that lead to the team losing 2-0 to AFC Wimbledon.
The Dons boss ruminated after goals by Matty Stevens and Omar Bugiel either side of half-time decided the game in the visitors’ favour and saw MK Dons knocked out of the FA Cup.
Lindsey said a failure to two defend the two moments were the things that took the game out of their hands.
He said, “It wasn’t what we wanted. We didn’t defend two moments well enough which consequently ended up killing the momentum of the game. We were ok in the first half in my opinion – I think we were in the game, playing really well and were the better side without creating loads, then we can’t defend one straight ball down our throats. We don’t deal well with the first phase, second phase, third phase and they get in far too easy.
“The timing makes it so much worse than it needs to be because it’s a minute before half-time so we gather the troops at half-time, speak about one or two things, then go out and concede straight away after the second half starts. The timing of the goals were terrible and the manner in which we concede is terrible. We get a man sent off with about 25 minutes to go and then the game’s out of sight.”
Speaking further, he said, “We didn’t react to it. I thought the best part of the game was before they scored their first goal. For 44 minutes or whatever it is, we were the better team, although we don’t create loads, which we spoke about. We have to be able to defend moments, especially coming into half-time, better than we did, and then straight after the second half, we concede again. The timing of the goals is terrible and I’m just disappointed, obviously.”
The flow of the game also saw Lindsey consider that the team needed to click more and that this was part of greater work he felt he needed to do.
He said, “We’re League Two, right? We’re going to defend against direct balls all the time and in nearly every game. If we can’t do that better, we’re not going to get to where we need to get to. It’s my fault and I need to do more with them.”
MK Dons Head Coach Scott Lindsey has received a Manager of the Month nomination for October 2024.
Lindsey earned the nomination following his first month as MK Dons boss, having taken over at the club in late September as a replacement for the Carlisle-bound Mike Williamson.
In October, MK Dons picked up 13 points from six games as the team began to climb the League Two table. The team scored 14 goals along that period.
League results in October saw MK Dons pick up away wins over Harrogate, Morecambe and Grimsby, as well as a home win over Accrington Stanley and a point from a draw with Tranmere Rovers. The team lost to Port Vale in the other game in Octoebr.
The other nominees for the October award are John Doolan of Accrington Stanley, Port Vale boss Darren Moore and Doncaster’s Grant McCann.
An announcement on who will win the prize will come later this week.
Max Verstappen took victory for Red Bull at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix in Brazil, with the Dutchman triumphing from 17th on the grid.
Victory was the first for both Verstappen and the Milton Keynes-based Red Bull Racing since the Spanish Grand Prix back in June, with Verstappen charging through to take the lead after a red flag and a safety car in a chaotic race in Brazil held through heavy rain.
Verstappen would triumph by a margin of over 19 seconds to second place finisher Esteban Ocon in the Alpine, while he also picked up a fastest lap bonus point in a result that sees him stretch his lead in the Formula One Driver’s Championship.
With three rounds of the season to go, Verstappen now holds a 62 point lead on second place Lando Norris in the McLaren, who finished the race in sixth. The Dutchman will win a fourth consecutive Driver’s Championship title if he can get a favourable result at the next round in Las Vegas, though victory at Interlagos puts him now in prime position to become the champion once more.
Meanwhile, Verstappen’s team-mate Sergio Perez finished 11th, narrowly finishing behind Lewis Hamilton in the battle for the final points position.
In the Constructor’s Championship, Red Bull remain third but gain on their competitors. The Milton Keynes-based team are now on 544 points, with Red Bull now 13 points behind second place Ferrari and 49 behind leaders McLaren.
A chaotic weekend of wet weather saw Verstappen only qualify 12th in a session held on Sunday morning, which became 17th when a previously applied grid penalty for an engine change was taken into account.
The position became a net 15th before it started, with Alex Albon unable to start due to damage caused by a crash in qualifying and Lance Stroll getting beached in a gravel trap on the initial formation lap.
When the race started, Verstappen flew out of the traps, flying up into the points by the start of lap 2 before making moves on the likes of Oscar Piastri and Pierre Gasly ahead to move into the top six.
Verstappen’s drive to victory initially stalled a she got stuck behind Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari, who in turn had been stuck behind Yuki Tsunoda and Ocon.
Around a third of the way through the race, however, things changed when rain intensified.
The Dutchman was one of a few drivers to gamble on staying out on the tyres with which they’d began the race, with Leclerc pitting, followed by Tsunoda and then the race leading duo of George Russell and Norris.
This bumped Verstappen up into second when the safety car was deployed due to the conditions, which was upgraded to a red flag with Williams driver Franco Colapinto lost it in the wet and crashed out.
When proceedings restarted, Verstappen initially failed to keep up with the pace set by Ocon, but was given another chance when a crash for Carlos Sainz lead to another safety car.
On the restart from that, Verstappen duly overtook Ocon and set off into the distance, setting fastest lap after fastest lap on his way to a dominant win reminiscent of his successes in the first stages of the season.
Perez, meanwhile, spun on lap one, and his race ultimately became a battle to try and get into the final points position.
He was able to gain places thanks to the likes of Sainz, Colapinto and Nico Hulkenberg being unable to finish, but having got into the top ten, he was unable to clear the RB of Liam Lawson before losing a track position on Hamilton and following him home.
The positions may yet change, however, with all of Norris, Russell, Tsunoda and Lawson under investigation for potential infringements for an unauthorised additional formation lap after Stroll’s formation lap crash, and with Mercedes duo Russell and Hamilton under a further investigation for a technical infringement relating to their tyres during the gap between the attempted first start and actual start.
The organisers of MK’s fireworks display have reflected on the cancellation of the 2024 show.
Keith Emmett and Sons had historically organised the Milton Keynes fireworks display at Campbell Park in the city centre.
However, the organisation announced in September that a fireworks display scheduled for last weekend would not take place as planned due to a lack of funds.
In a comment, the family reflected on the troubles that saw the show fail to take place sand said they would strive to continue to bring events to Milton Keynes.
They said, “Remember, Remember the 5th of November… For the Emmett family, this year truly marks the end of an era. This weekend gone would have been our annual fireworks and funfair, a time to come together in celebration and community spirit. For 43 wonderful years, we’ve had the privilege of bringing free fireworks to our home of Milton Keynes, creating a tradition that has warmed our hearts as much as yours.
“Given generations of cherished memories, dazzling lights, laughter, and togetherness that we have created with you all over the years. We will continue to bring you spectacular events and seasonal installations across Milton Keynes and look forward to making many more memories with you all.
“With all our gratitude, The Emmett Family”
Brackley Town will make a visit to face League One side Stockport County in the Second Round of the FA Cup.
Having defeated National League outfit Braintree Town in the first round, the Saints’ reward will be a trip to face the League One side at Edgeley Park.
The tie will be played on the weekend around Saturday November 30th, with the specific tie date, time and ticket details to be confirmed in due course.
The meeting will be Brackley’s first encounter with Stockport since the 2018/19 season, which came at a time when the two sides were in the National League North together.
Stockport advanced after beating National League side Forest Green Rovers 2-1 after extra-time in the previous round. The Hatters currently sit in 10th position in the third tier table, having won last season’s League Two title and in the process earning a second promotion in three seasons during the 2023/24 campaign.
Brackley have managed to draw with or beat Stockport in each of their six meetings before Stockport’s promotion out of the National League North, with the most recent meeting seeing Brackley win 1-0 back in March 2019. The last time Stockport recorded a win over the Northamptonshire-based club came in 2017, when they were 3-0 winners at Brackley’s St James Park.
