AFC Wimbledon picked up a deserved 2-0 win away at Wealdstone as we came away from pre-season unbeaten.
The result was arguably never in doubt from the moment Omar Bugiel planted a header to open the scoring after five minutes, with the chances flowing from that point onwards.
After a quiet start to the second-half we then wrapped up the win, with Ali Al-Hamadi poking home from more or less on the goal line – a big boost for our striker and our squad as a whole as he continued to build up his fitness.
For the Dons, all roads now lead to Grimsby as we bid to make a solid start to our league campaign a week today.
Johnnie Jackson once again made wholesale changes for this final pre-season fixture, with the likes of Josh Neufville, James Tilley and Josh Davison all coming in to start.
Wimbledon started the brighter of the two sides and were rewarded for their expansive wing play with the opening goal. Jack Currie escaped down the left before crossing for the onrushing Bugiel to power home a header.
Joe Lewis and Jake Reeves both had opportunities to increase our lead as their respective efforts drifted off target in a dominant first quarter for the Dons. Bugiel was hungry for a second goal and was next to threaten as he fired a powerful effort at Wealdstone’s Jed Ward.
Ryan Johnson’s header was also off target as Ward was left stranded in a crowded penalty area. Giovanni McGregor came closest for the hosts, with his free-kick whistling over Alex Bass’s crossbar just before the half-time whistle blew.
There was a switch up top after the hour mark as Al-Hamadi and Harry Pell were introduced as a makeshift front two. James Ball was also given more valuable minutes ahead of our league opener.
Home keeper Jed Ward was called into action again, this time keeping out a rasping volley from James Tilley following a knockdown by Pell. However, we didn’t have to wait much longer for another goal, Al-Hamadi scrambling home from barely a few yards out following a goalmouth scramble.
This saw us through to a straightforward victory as we look to take this pre-season momentum into the League Two campaign next weekend.
AFC Wimbledon: Alex Bass, Jake Reeves, Ryan Johnson, James Tilley (Ryan McLean), Josh Davison (Ali Al-Hamadi), Josh Neufville (Aron Sasu), Armani Little (James Ball), Omar Bugiel (Harry Pell), Jack Currie, Joe Lewis, Isaac Ogundere
PICS: Ian Stephen (Pro Sports Images)