Our side were made to pay for starting slow in both halves as two early goals either side of half-time earnt Walsall a 3-1 victory at the Poundland Bescot Stadium.
A deflected effort inside the opening five minutes from Isaac Hutchinson put the hosts ahead before Ryley Towler scored his first goal in a Wimbledon shirt with a low finish.
A good spell followed for the Dons but we just couldn’t find the final ball required to hit the front and as a result we were made to pay.
Another lacklustre beginning to the second 45 minutes saw Danny Johnson score after being put through before Tom Knowles sealed the game in stoppage time to cap off another away day to forget for Wimbledon.
With three home games to come later this month the challenge will be for our side to bounce back as quickly as possible.
There was one change to the team which saw off Colchester United last time out with Paul Kalambayi coming in for the injured Paris Maghoma. This meant there was a reshuffle as Ryley Towler moved into midfield.
However, the real headline came on the bench as captain Alex Woodyard made a matchday squad for the first time this season.
It was a fast start to the game which in turn led to an early goal for the hosts. A ball found its way into the penalty area to the waiting Hutchinson whose effort took a deflection on the way in.
The Dons took a little while to get going after the early setback and soon began to threaten as Ayoub Assal did well to work some space by the touchline before seeing his dangerous low cross hacked clear.
Pressure was building on the Saddlers and eventually it told as we plundered our equaliser. A corner wasn’t properly cleared with the ball falling to Towler who fired home low.
Wimbledon continued to push forward with Assal first forcing Owen Evans to palm his powerful effort over the bar before Harry Pell headed straight at the keeper from the resulting corner.
Our good spell continued into the second-half with Ethan Chislett and Pell both seeing shots blocked. However it would be Walsall who would retake the lead as Johnson raced onto a through ball before rounding Nik Tzanev to finish after beating the offside trap.
Chances were few and far between as the half progressed, but the Dons should arguably have had a penalty with Pell appearing to be pushed in the area.
Walsall then killed the game off in added on time as a quick throw-in led to Knowles tapping home from a cut back.
AFC Wimbledon: Nik Tzanev, Chris Gunter, Lee Brown, Harry Pell, Josh Davison, Ayoub Assal, Ethan Chislett (Alex Woodyard), Ryley Towler, Jack Currie (Kyle Hudlin), Paul Kalambayi, Isaac Ogundere (Courtney Senior)
PICS: Steve Bailey (Pro Sports Images)