Post-match reaction from the boss
Neal Ardley saluted Wimbledon’s second-half response after their late fightback snatched a point at Barnet today.
Speaking to Dons Player, the Wimbledon manager admitted that his side were disjointed in the first-half and needed a half-time dressing down to put things right.
“We got things wrong in the first-half with players not doing their jobs properly, but they responded well in the second-half,” he said. “We showed a good spirit to fight back. I just felt that as the match wore on we were getting stronger. I felt that we were the team that would win it during the second-half, but then we conceded from a set-piece. That was the frustrating part as we worked so hard all week on them and we had defended well up until the goal. These are things we have to keep working on, but we will take a point in the end today.”
Neal Ardley praised the 1,092 Dons fans who turned out in force at Barnet – and he was delighted to repay their faith with that late leveller.
“I would not say that I was impressed with our tenacity as that has to be demanded now every week,” he added. “If I was a fan on a cold day at Barnet the least I would expect is for the players to throw themselves into everything. Last week the supporters were phenomenal and they were brilliant again in turning out in their droves. I am just pleased that we gave them a performance that at least showed we were prepared to scrap and battle.”
The Dons boss confirmed that the first-half injury to Jonathan Meades was not as bad as first feared. Midfielder Meades, on loan from Bournemouth, suffered a knee injury, but he should be fit enough to return to full training next week.
Dons Player subscribers can view the full video interview with Neal Ardley later this weekend.