Preview: Dons aim to upset the odds in South London derby

Quotes from both camps ahead of Charlton v Wimbledon

14 December 2018

Wally Downes is under no illusions about the size of the task Wimbledon face at Charlton Athletic on Saturday and he has called for a repeat of the commitment shown in the second-half against Rochdale.

Wimbledon's record against the Addicks is very good with just one loss in the last six meetings, but the Dons will tomorrow come up against a Charlton side mounting their best bid for automatic promotion in recent years after beating League One leaders Portsmouth on Tuesday night.

Of course, Dons favourite Lyle Taylor is now plying his trade at Charlton and he scored the winner back in April when the two teams last met. Though Lyle picked up a knock in Charlton's win on Tuesday, he is expected to feature at The Valley.

The picture above shows Anthony Hartigan receiving congratulations from Rod McDonald after his goal in the Checkatrade Trophy at The Valley earlier in the season.

Below are quotes from both managers, plus stats, and a recap of past meetings:

Wally Downes:

"If our players show the application that they did on Saturday we can certainly meet the challenge. I went along and watched Charlton play on Tuesday and it was a very good performance. They must have had a terrific month prior to this one as I know their manager got the Manager of the Month award and they are near to the top of the table. They hit Portsmouth with two goals on the break and then defended superbly in the second-half, getting their bodies in the way. It was a real high-class game for League One, so I'm under no illusions that we will have to go there and be bang at it from the get-go.

"Our place is always sold out because the season tickets are sold out. Perhaps there could have been a disconnect during that poor run, but we'd like to think we gave them good cause to be supportive. The fans were really behind the players on Saturday and when you go to an away game like this you want to make more noise than you normally do. I know there are 150 of our fans going on a boat and I'm sure our supporters will make enough noise at the game for the boys, who will certainly be putting the effort in for them."

Lee Bowyer

"That (on Tuesday) was the best win we've had. Portsmouth are a good side, are top of the league and I think they had won eight on the spin before that. Everyone was outstanding on the night, people came off the bench and Nicky nicked himself a goal – he obviously likes playing there - so as a whole from back to front we were outstanding.

"I was over the moon and the togetherness the lads showed was great to watch. It was great to see on sidelines and for the fans too; for them to see their lads giving 100 per cent and putting their bodies on the line.

"There is a long way to go and I wouldn't say they (Wimbledon) are fighting for survival because we aren't even half-way through the season. I'm sure they aren't where they want to be but they have got a new manager, which will open the door for players who may have not been in the team before.

"I know the new manager will get them motivated. I watched their game against Rochdale on Saturday and they were all committed and it is going to be tough and physical. We have to do what we do and we will respect them like we do every team we play. We're at home and I'm expecting our fans to be singing like they always do to get us going. My job is to make sure that we are physically ready for the game."

Team news

Wally Downes was set to check on the fitness of James Hanson (illness), but Joe Pigott (thigh) and Deji Oshilaja (ankle) are both ruled out.

Charlton have doubts over Lyle Taylor, Krystian Bielik and Mark Marshall, who all picked up impact injuries at Portsmouth on Tuesday night. Karlan Grant is also a doubt with a hamstring injury. Darren Pratley and Lewis Page remain sidelined with knee and hip problems respectively, and Josh Cullen and Igor Vetokele are also out with shoulder injuries. Jamie Ward is still out, as is long-term absentee Jake Forster-Caskey.

Last time out

Portsmouth 1-2 Charlton
AFC Wimbledon 1-1 Rochdale

Last meeting

Charlton 2-2 AFC Wimbledon (4 September 2018)

In an entertaining Checktrade Trophy group match, goals from Anthony Hartigan and Tom Soares were evened up by the hosts through Naby Sarr and Jamie Mascoll. However, Wimbledon won 4-2 on penalties to secure an extra point in the competition.

Previous meetings

The Dons played against Charlton three times last season and below is a summary of those previous matches:

AFC Wimbledon 1-0 Charlton (10 April 2018)

Lyle Taylor scored the only goal of the game on a night that proved pivotal to Wimbledon's survival hopes. Roared on by a vociferous home crowd under the lights, the Dons produced a resilient display to earn a narrow victory against a Charlton side beaten in the semi-final of the play-offs.

AFC Wimbledon 3-1 Charlton (3 December 2017)

Though Cody McDonald opened the scoring early on for Wimbledon in this Emirates FA Cup second round tie, Karlan Ahearne-Grant levelled matters for the visitors in the 22nd minute. However, Lyle Taylor struck a double, both in the last 20 minutes, to set-up a third round match at Wembley against Tottenham Hotspur.

Charlton 1-0 AFC Wimbledon (20 October 2017)

A 78th minute free-kick from Ricky Holmes proved to be the difference between the two teams at The Valley. In a game of few chances, Holmes struck from an acute angle to win it for Charlton.

Tickets

Wimbledon supporters who have bought tickets in advance can collect from the away ticket office, which is located at the South Stand.

Dons supporters can pay on the day (cash only at the same place as above).

Prices are as follows:

Adults £24
Concessions (over 65 and under 21) £20
Students and Under-18s £10
Under-11s £5.

iFollow

Our WDON team will be providing live coverage from The Valley. This will be available by accessing our iFollow channel.

Match Previews

Match Reports

Promotion chasers Charlton prove too strong for the Dons

Late goal from Mark Marshall seals victory for the hosts

15 December 2018

Substitute Mark Marshall’s 86th minute strike killed off Wimbledon’s hopes of a second-half fightback against promotion contenders Charlton at The Valley today.

In a game that saw both sides reduced to 10 men, Naby Sarr for Charlton and Mitch Pinnock for Wimbledon, the hosts scored two goals in the last half an hour to earn a 2-0 victory. With an impressive away following of 1,048 in terrible weather conditions, Wimbledon threatened an equaliser at 1-0 down, but it just wasn’t to be and it meant a first defeat since taking over as manager for Wally Downes.

Wally Downes made three changes from the side that started against Rochdale. Andy Barcham, Anthony Wordsworth, and Terell Thomas all came into the team in place of Jake Jervis, James Hanson, and Rod McDonald.

There was a turning point in this match after just 56 seconds when Naby Sarr was shown a straight red card after a rash challenge on Tennai Watson. In the immediate aftermath of that decision Charlton produced a good response, as they sought to make light of the disadvantage. Tariq Fosu caused plenty of problems down the left flank, but Scott Wagstaff was quick to offer defensive assistance to Tennai Watson. Former Dons striker Lyle Taylor showed threat for the first time when he broke down the right, but Will Nightingale did enough to stop him getting a shot in and his subsequent cross was well gathered by Joe McDonnell.

Despite the one-man advantage, Wimbledon struggled to provide support to Mitch Pinnock, who was ploughing a lone furrow up front. In a rare Dons attack in the first half an hour, Pinnock sent over a superb cross from the right that just eluded everyone in the box. At the other end, Ben Purrington did really well to make a stop a goal-bound effort from Lyle Taylor.

Wimbledon created a first meaningful chance in the 31^st minute when Wagstaff did really well down the right and though his cross was half cleared, it fell nicely for Tom Soares, but he shot over the crossbar. In atrocious conditions at The Valley, referee Trevor Kettle made a big decision in the 33^rd minute. On a very slippy surface, the man in the middle adjudged that Pinnock had dived under a challenge from Patrick Bauer and he showed a second yellow card to the Wimbledon forward. Pinnock would have been through on goal, so it seemed strange that he would go to ground in such a situation. He had earlier been booked for a late challenge and his red card meant that both sides had to play with 10 men for nearly an hour.

As we approached half-time, Charlton attempted to put Wimbledon under pressure, but stand-in captain Will Nightingale and Terell Thomas coped really well at the heart of defence. As the half-time whistle shrilled, neither side had tested the goalkeeper.

Charlton upped the tempo of their second-half attacks after the restart and Wimbledon had to defend deep in their own half. The hosts created a shooting chance for Ben Reeves less than two minutes into the second-half, but he blazed over the crossbar. Joe Aribo also had a good opportunity, but his effort was also over the crossbar. There was a moment of concern for Wimbledon when Lyle Taylor reached a through ball before McDonnell and his header fell for Aribo, but he volleyed off target.

The pressure was becoming greater as the half wore on and Charlton made the breakthrough on the hour. Nicky Ajose’s cross from the Charlton left was diverted in at the near post with Lyle Taylor, under pressure from Terell Thomas, credited with the goal. Wally Downes responded to that by making a quick change with Jake Jervis introduced for Anthony Hartigan. Tyler Burey was also introduced for the latter stages in place of Wagstaff and the young winger was straight into the action as he produced a direct run down the right that won a corner. At the other end, Wimbledon needed superb goalkeeping from McDonnell to stay in it when he came out of his area and spread himself to stop Ajose rounding him for an open goal.

With 13 minutes remaining, James Hanson was introduced for Andy Barcham as Wimbledon sought a late equaliser. Burey, who impressed after his introduction, twice put in lovely crosses from the right that no one was able to get on the end of. The pressure was building from a Wimbledon perspective and now it was Charlton hanging on defensively.

The Dons pushed forward in a sustained attempt to conjure up a late equaliser, but the game was effectively sealed when Marshall fired home superbly after Wimbledon had given the ball away at the back.

AFC Wimbledon: Joe McDonnell, Tennai Watson, Ben Purrington, Will Nightingale, Terell Thomas, Scott Wagstaff (Tyler Burey), Anthony Hartigan (Jake Jervis), Mitch Pinnock, Andy Barcham (James Hanson), Tom Soares, Anthony Wordsworth.

Pic credit: Matt Redman, Pro Sports Images.

Match Reports

Ticket News

Charlton away: buy in advance until Friday

Cheer on the Dons at The Valley

13 December 2018

We've had good ticket sales for the away match at Charlton Athletic on Saturday and there's still time to snap-up your ticket in advance.

You can join the Dons travelling army at The Valley by paying on the day, but tickets are available at a discounted rate before 3.00 pm on Friday.

Advance prices are published below (please note that tickets on the day for Adults and Concessions will rise by £3):

Adults £21
Concessions (over 65 and under 21) £17
Students and Under-18s £10
Under-11s £5.

You can buy in advance from our online ticket shop and collect from Charlton pre-match. Tickets will be available to buy on the day (cash only) from the South Stand ticket office.

Disabled supporters

Prices for ambulant and wheelchair supporters are: Adults £18; Concessions £15; Students £12; Under-18s £10; Under-11s £5. A personal assistant goes free of charge. Contact the club on 020 8547 3528 for information.

Please note that there will be no supporters' coach running for this match.

Ticket News

AFC Wimbledon

Standings

Preview: Dons aim to upset the odds in South London derby

Promotion chasers Charlton prove too strong for the Dons

Charlton away: buy in advance until Friday

Charlton tickets: buy in advance