Johnnie Jackson praised the attitude and endeavour of his squad after the Dons drew 1-1 at home to Queens Park Rangers.
An early goal from Lyndon Dykes saw us fall behind early on, before Josh Neufville capped off a well-worked team move in the second-half, as we fought back strongly.
Here our manager reflects on the game, the contribution of Josh, offers his thoughts on pre-season so far, and brings us up to speed on Armani Little’s fitness.
Watch the full interview below.
AN ENTERTAINING GAME. HAPPY WITH THE PERFORMANCE TODAY?
I’m pleased with the day’s work. It was a really good game that I feel the supporters enjoyed as well. It was a good performance against quality opposition. We came away with a draw and probably could’ve edged it.
ANOTHER GOAL FOR JOSH NEUFVILLE. HOW IMPRESSED HAVE YOU BEEN WITH HIM?
Josh has been excellent. All of the new lads have settled in really well. Their attitude to the work and what we’re asking of them has been excellent. They’ve all got great quality, the goal that we scored was a great goal – Omar (Bugiel) with the switch, Tills (James Tilley) in a one against one, before getting his cross in, and Josh made the box to finish.
ARE YOU GETTING A GOOD IDEA OF HOW WE COULD LINE-UP AGAINST GRIMSBY?
We’ve got two more games to come. We’ll make the changes and look at other permutations. We’re getting closer. In every game and training session that I’m seeing, people are making cases to play.
That’s what I wanted to say to them at the start of pre-season – they all want to be in the team for Grimsby. This season will be about a lot more than the starting 11.
WHAT DO YOU FEEL HARRY PELL BRINGS TO THAT MORE ATTACK-MINDED ROLE?
He causes the opposition problems there. Aerially he’s a threat. He picks up good positions when the ball goes wide. He can drop in to help with the build up and he can find those 10 pockets. He helps us to go direct if we need to as well.
WE PLAYED BRENTFORD B YESTERDAY IN A BEHIND CLOSED DOORS FRIENDLY. HOW DID THAT GO?
It was another good workout. It was invaluable for us really, we got Ali (Al-Hamadi) his first 45 minutes. Lee Brown and Alex Pearce came through a good 75 minutes. It was a solid performance against some old faces in the opposition, so we had a good idea about what we would be up against.
ARMANI LITTLE IS BACK IN FULL TRAINING. HOW CLOSE TO A RETURN IS HE?
He’s really close, he could have perhaps been involved today. He’s obviously not had that bulk of training. He’s fully healed, looking really fresh and raring to go. We’ll look to integrate him on Tuesday night.
HOW SATISFIED ARE YOU WITH PRE-SEASON SO FAR AND WHAT’S GOING WELL?
The way that the group is gelling is satisfying. We’ve brought in the right types of lads. They’ve fitted in perfectly. Today we looked like we knew what we’re about in possession and out of it.
MATCH PICS: Ian Stephen (Pro Sports Images)