Youth squad aid club effort for Port Vale
AFC Wimbledon Under-18s will swap their Wednesday training session for a spot of hard graft at the Cherry Red Records Stadium by helping to get Thursday’s Port Vale match on.
Mark Robinson (pictured) has ordered his squad to pick up the shovels and clear the snow from the pitch and surrounding areas of the stadium as part of the club’s drive to avoid a postponement of Thursday’s televised match for the first-team.
Dons supporters have already kindly offered their assistance for Wednesday’s clear-up and Robinson is keen to bring some youthful exuberance to the efforts.
Speaking to Dons Player, Mark Robinson said: “David Charles (club secretary) told me this morning that Neal Ardley is desperate to get this game on. Instead of our boys coming straight from college and training on Wednesday, they will come down here and help to clear the pitch.
“We have always done things like this as a squad. Before the beginning of this season I had all the lads pulling out weeds from the ground and painting the terraces. This is an aspect of the game that has gone a bit in recent years for young players as their apprenticeships have changed. But we like to do things like this as it gives the players a good grounding and keeps their feet on the ground.”
Though the club’s Under-18s have not played a league match since December, they have more than held their own in friendly matches recently.
Goals from Duvaine Lindo and Dan Pearse earned a hard-fought 2-2 draw against Colchester United with the Under-16s going one better as they beat the same club’s academy 2-1.
Robinson added: “Colchester are a category two academy in the EPPP (Elite Player Performance Plan) and are ploughing a small fortune into their academy with 4G pitches and other facilities. They were two fantastic results for us, particularly for the Under-16s as Colchester have beaten Tottenham and Arsenal earlier this season.”
Dons Player subscribers can now view the full video interview with Mark Robinson on our premium site.
. Supporters who can help should bring tools, including shovels and wheelbarrows if they possibly can.Volunteer helpe-mail us by clicking on Any other supporters who can provide assistance on Wednesday to clear the ground of snow should please