Wobbly Wombles Look Back In Apprehension
Rotherham 1 v Wimbledon 0
Wimbledon are back looking over their shoulders after going down to their second-successive away defeat as they lost 1-0 at promotion-chasing Rotherham United on Good Friday (March 29).
The Dons produced a solid defensive display but were undone by a quality corner routine with just quarter of an hour remaining, when Lionel Ainsworth’s ball was flicked on excellently at the near post by Kari Arnason, giving Alex Revell a simple chance to head in at the far post.
On the balance of play the score was a fair reflection of the game, with the home side having the bulk of the possession, but the Dons will have been frustrated to be undone just as they were getting within glimpse of a potentially crucial away point.
As well as a solid defensive display from the likes of Pim Balkestein and Mat Mitchel-King, the Dons were indebted to John Sullivan who pulled off a handful of good saves to keep them in the game.
His first came from Claude Davis after 25 minutes, diving to his near post turn away the former Crawley man’s effort after David Noble’s corner was only half cleared.
And he did even better to deny Lee Fecklington’s effort, just getting enough fingertips on the ball to deflect it round the post when it seemed destined for the back of the net.
The Dons forged openings of their own after a couple of early second-half substitutions, with Harry Pell’s effort being tipped over by Scott Shearer and then Luke Moore ghosting through the defence but seeing his effort blocked by Shearer at the near post.
And they were made to pay the price for those misses when the hosts did finally capitalise on their dominance, although Jack Midson spurned a chance for an injury-time equaliser when he headed tamely over.
With Accrington Stanley and Plymouth both winning, things at the bottom of the table are again condensing up, although bottom-pair York and Aldershot are at risk of falling adrift of the others.
The Dons know they have an excellent opportunity on Easter Monday (1 April) as they host fellow strugglers Barnet at Kingsmeadow in a genuine relegation ‘six pointer’, before travelling to Bristol Rovers the following Saturday.
Attendance: 7,594
Rotherham: Shearer, Mullins, Davis, Morgan, Skarz, Frecklington, Arnason, Noble (Ainsworth 73), Kearns (Agard 87), Revell, Nardiello (Odejayi 85). Subs not used: Warrington, O’Connor, Pringle, Ridehalgh.
Goalscorer: Revell 76.
Booked: Skarz 61.
Wimbledon: Sullivan, Mitchel-King, Bennett, Balkestein, Hussey, Meades, Pell, Yussuff (Sainte-Luce 56), L. Moore, Alexander (Darko 56), Midson. Subs not used: Jaimez-Ruiz, Cummings, Long, Youga, Antwi.
Booked: L. Moore 65.
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March 31, 2013
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