Team news for Morecambe match
Neal Ardley has decided that the time is right to bring Andy Frampton back into Wimbledon’s squad for the home match against Morecambe on Saturday.
Though the experienced defender travelled with the team to Carlisle recently, he has yet to feature in a match day squad this season after suffering a broken ankle in the summer.
However, speaking to Rob Cornell during his pre-match bulletin for Dons Player, Neal Ardley said: “We always had a plan that this Saturday would be right for Andy to come back into the reckoning. We’ve done a bit of work with Andy and not left him short. He’s as close as he can be and I’m sure Andy will be champing at the bit to play. That’s what we want – healthy competition – and we’ve got that too at left-back with Ben Harrison and Callum Kennedy.”
Frampton played 90 minutes in a behind closed doors match on Tuesday at the training ground to boost his match fitness. Harry Pell is also available again after serving a three match suspension for his red card against Southend United in the JPT.
Neal Ardley is expecting a completely different kind of challenge against Morecambe on Saturday after victory against Burton Albion on Tuesday. However, with Matt Tubbs suspended, Neal stressed the importance of playing to Bayo Akinfenwa’s strengths after he opened his Dons account against the league leaders.
“It was nice for Bayo on Tuesday, but it had not been a concern for me because he was doing a great job for the team,” added Neal Ardley. “We had been trying to make sure that the team gave him better service and we did that. We had more width and got more crosses into the box. That’s what Bayo thrives on and we will have to make sure that we continue in the same vein.
“Jim Bentley has done a great job at Morecambe and he’s improved his squad this season. They’re always very well organised and often cause us problems. If it has to be a different way of winning a game then we will have to master that.”
Dons Player subscribers can now watch the full video interview with Neal Ardley an in-depth interview with Adam Barrett will follow later on today.