Bayo Goal Gets Dons A Draw
Yeovil Town 1 v Wimbledon 1
Bayo Akinfenwa’s equaliser 10 minutes from the end preserved Wimbledon’s unbeaten record on their travels this season as they drew 1-1 at Yeovil Town last weekend (12 September).
The big striker headed home his second goal of the season to lift what has, for him and the Dons as a whole, been a season of underperformance so far.
But Dons boss Neal Ardley refused to be downbeat afterwards, focusing on the performance rather than the result.
‘We were the better team and we should have won the game,’ he told BBC London 94.9. ‘In general, the chances we created, I think we should have scored four today.
‘The performance levels were exceptional and I’m really pleased for the fans because it would have been sad for everyone involved in the club to come home disappointed today after such a good performance.’
Yeovil keeper Artur Krysiak was in action early on to deny George Francomb in the first minute and later Tom Elliott as Wimbledon started the game brightly.
And Jake Reeves also had a goalscoring chance after being set up by Elliott but the former Swindon man didn’t get enough behind his shot.
But in typical fashion the Dons were made to pay for their inability to convert chances into goals as the home side took the lead in the 26th minute.
Omar Sowunmi had already skewed a shot wide but this time he beat Will Nightingale at the near post to head on a long throw, and Ryan Bird swooped to put the home side 1-0 ahead.
Reeves was cursing his luck on the stroke of half-time as he beat a man in the inside-right channel, shimmied his way past another defender and then struck a shot that hit the far post before rebounding out.
And that misfortune continued into the second period which was 10 minutes old when Paul Robinson thumped a header against the bar from a Francomb corner.
With the home side retreating to defence and Akinfenwa starting to impose himself, the Dons started to enjoy the upper hand but without creating many clear goalscoring opportunities.
But that changed with 11 minutes to go as Francomb delivered another corner into the centre of the box and Akinfenwa capitalised on poor goalkeeper positioning to power home a header.
The Dons could have gone on to win it, with substitute Adebayo Azeez twice shooting wide, but in the end a draw had to suffice.
Wimbledon entertain Notts County on Saturday (19 September) and travel to early strugglers Luton Town the following weekend.
Yeovil: Krysiak, Roberts, Sokolik, Arthurworrey, Smith, Cornick, Dolan, Wakefield, Howells (Gibbons 93), Bird, Sowunmi (Beck 54). Subs not used: Weale, Allen, Melanson.
Goalscorer: Bird 26.
Wimbledon: Shea, Fuller, Robinson, Nightingale, Meades, Barcham (Rigg 75), Bulman, Reeves, Francomb, Akinfenwa, Elliott (Azeez 70). Subs not used: Beere, Sweeney, Osborne, McDonnell, Kaja.
Goalscorer: Akinfenwa 79.
Booked: Nightingale 50.
Att: 3,687
By Rob Crane
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September 7, 2015
