Match report
AFC Wimbledon?s upturn of home form continued with a comprehensive victory over struggling Hendon. Roscoe Dsane?s goals at either end of the match sandwiched a Steve Wales header on 54 minutes to give the Dons their first back-to-back home wins of the campaign.
On a day of mixed emotions for Dons? supporters, Kris Stewart made his official farewell in the match day programme. A presentation was organised to take place prior to kick off so the fans could share their appreciation for Kris?s hard work, dedication and achievement since the club?s formation in 2002. The ovation lasted several minutes.
A charged atmosphere seemed to fire up the players on the pitch and Dave Anderson?s side ? unchanged for the third game on the spin ? took an early lead. Wes Daly?s long clearance seemed innocuous enough but Hendon?s Jazz Rose telegraphed his header back to the keeper and Dsane swooped to nick the ball away from Wilmot and slot home comfortably. There were just 32 seconds on the clock.
Hendon have failed to put together any kind of form, home or away, this season, and there was now an air of expectancy around Kingsmeadow that plenty more goals were in the offing. Sadly, Wimbledon didn?t press home their advantage and allowed the visitors to play their way back into the first half. There was to be no passage through a staunch Dons defence, though, with Hendon mostly limited to strikes from distance. Only Dean Green beat a path into the Dons? box but his shot roared into the Tempest End.
Conversely, Wimbledon couldn?t establish any rhythm, and yet created the better chances. Two good opportunities fell to Roscoe Dsane but he smashed the first over the bar from eight yards, and hammered the second wide from the edge of the area. Byron Bubb saw his well-struck direct free-kick collected by Wilmot, and Scott Fitzgerald beat the offside trap, finishing with a clever lob, only to realize that the linesman had ruled it out because Dsane had impeded the last defender.
Keen to start the second half at a higher tempo, Wimbledon soon had Hendon on the back foot, moving the ball quickly and pressing their opponents all over the pitch. It took the men in blue just nine minutes to double their advantage. Byron Bubb spun past Rose, raced to the by-line and whipped the ball in for Wales to score his first competitive goal for the club.
Confidence grew. Dsane weaved his way through several defenders before unleashing a terrific 25-yard drive that fizzed past the post. Moments later, Dsane got behind the visitors? defence to square for Scott Fitzgerald, but the Brentford man skewed his shot across the face of the goal.
Although Hendon attacks were few and far between, Andy Little was wise to stay sharp, brilliantly parrying Ross Pickett?s point-blank strike. It was the last chance that the visitors created and, with Richard Butler?s arrival, it was all one-way traffic until the end.
A huge goal-kick eluded the entire Hendon defence and Bubb stole in, nudging his header onto the crossbar. Butler latched onto Dsane?s clever ball but sliced his attempt into the side netting; Antony Howard?s back-post header was clawed away by Wilmott and Wes Daly latched onto Bubb?s defence-splitting pass only to thunder his shot at the over-worked keeper.
With the seconds ebbing away it looked like Wimbledon would have to settle for a two-goal margin. Then Richard Butler, never a player to stop toiling before the final whistle, won a penalty in the dying moments and Roscoe Dsane stepped up to score with the last kick of the match.
The Dons find themselves eighth in the table after seven games - a decent start but it?s not going to get any easier. Margate are next up on the fixture list, a top-five side not likely to sit back, absorb pressure and counter attack. So at the very least, Dave Anderson and the players should get something different to pit their wits against.
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