Reaction from the Wimbledon manager
Neal Ardley praised his players for adapting their playing style after the Dons dug deep for a last-gasp win against York City.
Neal said that the playing surface made it difficult to play good football, but he was pleased that the players battled away to earn their ninth League 2 home win this season.
Speaking during an interview with Rob Cornell for Dons Player, Neal Ardley said: “I mentioned the other day how patient the fans had been and they need to stay with us. Premier League players would struggle to get the ball down and play on our pitch at the moment. It is turning from boggy to bobbly. We are confident at home and we look to get the ball down and play, but now we have to play scrappy, percentage football. It’s something that does not suit us at the moment.
“At half-time we said that we had to play a scrappy game. We had to get the ball forward quicker and get bodies forward. I don’t think we deserved to win, but we did a lot better in the second half and apart from the odd individual error we looked reasonably solid. We managed to pull through. I don’t think we deserved to win, but there have been plenty of games that we should have won and haven’t so I will take it.”
Defender Deji Oshilaja ended Wimbledon’s scoring drought with a fine header and Neal has been delighted with his impact since he joined the club.
“There were a few raised eyebrows from people when we signed a 5 ft 11 inch centre back, but he is a classy player,” Neal said. “He is aggressive and does a lot of things very well. I previously tried to sign him three or four times, but now I have got him and he is a great lad. I am really proud to have played a part in his career since he was 17.”
Dons Player subscribers can watch the full post-match reaction with Neal Ardley and an interview with George Francomb will follow tomorrow.