Match report
Wimbledon finally returned to winning ways with a deserved, if not entirely convincing 1-0 win over Heybridge Swifts. As with the Dons, Heybridge Swifts had suffered a substandard start to their season. Last season, the Swifts managed a top ten finish and held the Dons to a 1-1 draw in the same fixture. However with key players moving, their ranks are depleted and before kick off they were languishing in the relegation zone.
In front of 2,406 loyal fans, the Wombles sought their first league victory since August and lined up with the same core of players that have been on display all season. Rob Quinn was pushed back into the centre of defence to make room for recent goal machine Karl Beckford. Up front Giuliano Grazioli made his home debut alongside fans’ favourite Richard Butler.
The opening exchanges lacked quality, as the ball was barely on the ground. With both sides’ defenders towering above their opposite men, a game of head tennis ensued. When finally the ball hit the deck, Wimbledon were able to show their quality, with good early link up play between Butler and Finn leading to a corner. Minutes later Heybridge attacked and exposed the Dons’ recent defensive flaws, as George Purcell saw a long range effort shave the post. The tricky winger was not closed down as communication between Garrard and Ferguson went missing.
Few further chances were created in the opening minutes as no route through seemed obvious at either end, and far too many balls continued to be played aerially. Terry Brown switched his wingers in an attempt to brighten up the affair. The manager was seen prowling the touchline encouraging his troops to “keep it simple”. On fifteen minutes, again Wimbledon looked bereft of confidence at the back as defenders refused to clear a corner. However with eighteen minutes on the clock, there was something for the Wombles’ faithful to shout about. Tony Finn, newly appearing on the right, terrorised his man, running at him. The mazy winger repeatedly feinted to cross with his right, before he lobbed a cross with his left. The ball eluded those in the goal centre, finding Steve Ferguson on the left. Ferguson had enough composure to score his second goal of the season, his effort hitting the back of the net via bar and keeper. Relief for fans players and staff alike.
Despite the Dons stepping up the tempo, the game lacked cohesion as it was permeated with lofted passes. Cries of “keep it down” were frequently hollered from an aghast Dons dugout. Finally on twenty five minutes, a move was constructed with the ball on the ground and - for the first time - Grazioli was played in one on one, ball to feet. His effort unfortunately was tame and saved by the Swifts’ keeper.
As the final stages of the first half were played out, Wimbledon looked more like creating the end product. Butler twice made Stephen Northwood in the Heybridge goal pull off impressive saves. These efforts were followed up by two top drawer saves from Northwood. Finn struck a free kick beautifully that looked to be heading in only for Northwood at full stretch to keep it out. Northwood (who was Cray Wanderers player of the season in 2006-2007) then managed to return to his feet and pull off another spectacular full stretch effort to keep out the rebound. These attempts were the Wombles’ last of the half, with momentum broken by fussy refereeing. Once again, AFC Wimbledon dominated their opponents in the first half everywhere, but without the scores to match.
The second half began in the same vein. Finn was looking impish as ever, Ferguson was dominant going forward, and both were ably supported by their fullbacks, with Haswell in particular showing impressive speed and commitment. Before the hour mark various changes were in motion for both sides. Will Salmon came on for Garrard at right back. Salmon’s first appearance of the season was a tricky one as he was pitted against lightning quick George Purcell, through whom most chances for Swifts were being channelled. For Heybridge, Tenkorang injected a portion of pace and quality after his introduction.
A succession of corners was won by Swifts without the goal ever being in much danger. Further substitutions as well as continual breaks in play by the referee strangled the game’s attraction and the second half progressed in a very stop-start manner with few chances. The Dons’ front two were swapped around, Webb and debutant Kneissl appeared for Butler and Grazioli, the latter having had a particularly fruitless day at the office. Guilty of not burying their opponents earlier, the final exchanges mainly consisted of the Dons pouring forward. Ferguson, Beckford and Hatton all cracked efforts at goal and, when not in possession, Goodliffe did his best to calm nerves at the back. Rob Quinn had to double up with Salmon occasionally on Purcell but there were few heart-in-mouth moments for the Dons. Right at the end, the referee seemingly ditched his fussy image, producing only a yellow to Swift’s Danny Barber, who went in extremely recklessly on Tony Finn.
Terry Brown was heard saying he would “take an ugly 1-0 right now” and in the end that is exactly what he got. Despite many chances to kill the game off the Dons never made it easy for themselves. An emphasis on wingers made it difficult to involve the central midfielders as much and they drifted in and out of the game. When the ball was played on the ground, glimpses of quality shone through the team, but it was sporadic. However their were signs of improvement today and a win and clean sheet will boost confidence in the camp before Tuesday’s visit to Margate, who have an identical record to the Wombles at this early stage of the season. After two wins, what Wimbledon have now is a bit of momentum, and hopefully it will continue to build |
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