Midfielder on his step-up to the first-team
Huw Johnson’s progression to the first-team has been far from straightforward as the midfielder has had to put a career-threatening injury behind him.
Huw’s development through the ranks was curtailed by a medial ligament tear to his knee two seasons ago and that meant the 19-year-old has waited longer than the likes of Brendan Kiernan, Jim Fenlon and Frankie Merrifield to make the step-up, though he did make a brief substitute appearance against Shrewsbury at the end of last season.
In an interview for Dons Player after his first League 2 start at Northampton yesterday, Huw said: “It was really difficult for me as I lost a lot of confidence. It was a serious injury to the extent that I thought I may not play again. But we have a good medical team here and Mike Rayner was excellent. It is great to see three of us coming through this season and there are a few other youngsters who I think could also do it. That is what Wimbledon used to be about and now we are trying to bring more young players through.”
Huw believes he is capable of much better if he is handed more first-team opportunities. “I have come this far and hopefully I can now push on and be a regular starter for the club,” he added. “I feel that I am now getting used to the pace of League 2 football and hopefully I have impressed. I have to try and secure my place, we have a good squad though, and I think we will get stronger as a team. We have a lot of new players, me being one of them, and we will get better.”
The full video interview with Huw can be viewed on Dons Player.