Dons Stay Top Despite Barrow Defeat

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Barrow 2 v Wimbledon 0

Wimbledon went down to a 2-0 defeat at Barrow on Saturday (13 November) but stayed top of the table thanks to Crawley’s failure to beat Darlington.

Hot on the heels of their win at Altrincham in midweek, the Dons found it difficult to adjust to the quality of Barrow’s pitch and paid the price for failing to convert their chances.

A goal in each half from James Owen and Marc Goodfellow gave the home side the points. Owen opened the scoring just before half-time, netting a rebound after Fraser Franks cleared Phil Bolland’s effort off the line.

The Dons dominated much of the second half as they pushed for an equaliser and were left exposed at the back when Paul Rutherford played in midfielder Goodfellow whose run and shot effectively ended the contest with just under quarter of an hour remaining.

Ricky Wellard had the Dons’ best chance but saw his effort saved by Mark Halstead in the Barrow goal.

Afterwards, Dons boss Terry Brown told the Surrey Comet: “When you come to a place like this you have got to take what you are given. If you don’t, you get punished.

“We missed a cutting edge and that is a bit frustrating. They showed us you win matches if you take your chances, and we didn’t take ours.”

The Dons now face their FA Cup replay at Ebbsfleet United on Thursday (18 November); their potential opponents in the 2nd round, Stevenage Borough and Milton Keynes Dons, replay two days earlier.

The tie means that the Dons’ home game against Kettering Town will now be played on Sunday 21 November.

Attendance: 1,375

Barrow: Halstead, Spender, M Pearson, Bolland, Edwards, Rutherford, Owen, Hulbert, Goodfellow, Chadwick, Blundell (Donnelly 90). Subs Not Used: S Pearson, Jones, Boyd, Sheridan.

Goals: Owen 43, Goodfellow 77.

Booked: Hulbert 45, Owen 76.

AFC Wimbledon: Brown, Hatton, Bush, S. Moore, Franks, Yakubu, Yussuff (Gregory 79), Wellard (Minshull 70), Kedwell, Nwokeji, Jackson (L. Moore 66). Subs not used: Turner, Blackman.

Booked: Hatton 17, Kedwell 45, Bush 79.

Referee: Tony Harrington (Cleveland).

Rob Crane.

November 14, 2010