MK Dons 1 - 1 Wrexham: Two Goals, Two Reds, and Lots of Missed Chances
In a match that started slow and ended in a breathless twenty-man battle, the Dragons settle for a draw.
The Wrecap:
Milton Keynes Dons 1 - 1 Wrexham AFC
Phil rolled out an intriguing lineup for today’s match. Up front: Marriott and Dalby. Dalby’s presence seems like a smart rotation of strikers and no one should be shocked to see Marriott getting more starts, but another benching of Mullin is certainly notable. Personally? I believe his pre-season injury still affects him, if not physically, then mentally. The last game is a perfect example: he had multiple missed chances that he normally nets with ease. Maybe Phil just wants to keep rotating his starters while we have multiple Saturday-Tuesday weeks in a row, maybe he thinks Paul needs more rest in general. Whatever the reason, the fact remains that Mullin simply hasn’t been scoring the goals we’ve expected him to score and Phil may be facing the uncomfortable choice of who to put in the lineup instead while Paul irons things out.
But enough about the strikers. Midfield also saw a change, with McClean slotting into Lee’s spot on the left alongside Young and Cannon. Mendy manned left wingback opposite Bolton on the right, with the trio of Boyle, Cleworth, and O’Connell at the back to provide Okonkwo’s main defensive cover. On the bench were Mullin, Palmer, Lee, Jordan Davies, Barnett, Tozer, and Howard.
After an uneventful first seven minutes, Okonkwo took too long recovering an off-target pass and gave up the first corner of the game. Nothing came from it and Wrexham cleared the ball back to the Dons’ half as the match continued to roll on at a casual, patient pace from both sides. Then Marriott turned things up a notch when he found nothing but space on the right side and made a run completely unmarked. He got into the box and put in an effort that was knocked around a bit before keeper Michael Kelly made a haphazard save.
The Dons’ first fifteen minutes were filled with mistakes and they came to a head at 15’ when a mistake at the back led to a golden opportunity for Wrexham but the Reds joined their hosts in making mistakes at crucial moments as multiple players passed the ball around looking for a perfect opening instead of taking a shot and the Dons were able to form up and clear the ball.
Five minutes later Wrexham came forward again with Bolton making a great run and winning a corner. Captain Young made a perfect delivery to the near post where McClean was waiting and he made a terrific header to net the opener. 1-0 Wrexham courtesy of McClean’s third goal for the club.
But it wouldn’t last. Just five minutes later Dan Kemp took advantage of a poor defensive touch from Boyle and easily scored the equalizer. They’d be back just four minutes later and Alex Gilbey fired a shot to the far post that Okonkwo was able to dive to and save. The Dons fired another shot just a moment later but it went wide. Suddenly, the Dons woke up and it felt like a whole new match.
There was a short but intriguing delay at 33’ when Lewington fouled Cannon but then tripped over him, stamping Cannon on the way as he fell over the touchline. It didn’t look intentional to me, but had there been VAR to review it could have easily ended up a red for Lewington. But since there wasn’t, no card of any color was issued. The incident ushered in a period of new energy from Wrexham and just three minutes later McClean nearly had a chance at his second when he fired a shot from distance that looked excellent, destined for the top corner before the ball curved just enough to miss the goal.
At 41’ the Dons’ took advantage of a mistake from Cannon and Gilbey was able to break away and put in a strong shot, but fortunately for us, it was just wide. They’d put in a few more messy efforts as the half wound down, but O’Connell and Cleworth defended them all well. The Dons’ period of attacking was capped when Tomlinson would put in a screamer of a shot from distance that Okonkwo made an incredible dive to save, knocking it offline enough that it hit the post instead of the net. Honestly, it could be his best effort yet in a Wrexham kit. Bolton took the ball away, nearly running it all the way to the opposite goal, but instead of shooting he tried to pass it, bungled it, and the home side cleared it to end the first forty-five. It was a half that saw Wrexham emerge as the stronger side, but a few choice mistakes not only cost us the lead but cost us a few extra goals as well.
Marriott and McClean started the second half off with an early tag team attempt, but the Dons formed up well and prevented them from getting a decent window to shoot into. Two minutes later Boyle received the first yellow of the game for a tame foul. This wouldn’t be noteworthy except ref Sam Purkiss let much worse go unpunished throughout the first half. Wrexham followed this up with a quick break, with Marriott finding himself one-on-one with Kelly, who saved his effort.
At 53’ McClean nearly had a second goal a second time when Dalby lassoed a Dons’ pass and got it to McClean whose shot was deflected away from goal. It would be the first of three set pieces over the next four minutes for Wrexham, but the fourth was for the Dons and that’s the one that will be talked about online today. Tomlinson took the shot from the corner and Okonkwo knocked it down and chased it. The ball hit the goal line and then Okonkwo slid. It appeared to me that Okonkwo slid the ball fully over the line, which is how it appeared to the Dons who started celebrating, but Okonkwo played the ball and the ref let play continue. Wrexham got the ball forward but, somehow, couldn’t capitalize and score as the home defense got back in time to spoil the effort. The Dons then swarmed the ref to berate the decision, climaxing when Lewington was shown a straight red card for his intense dissent (probably “abuse of the ref” is more appropriate, but that won’t be what appears in the book).
Things happened fast after that, with O’Connell receiving a yellow for a foul a few minutes later before Phil made his first substitution - a triple - at 64’: Mullin on for Marriott, Lee on for Mendy, and Barnett on for Bolton, shifting McClean to the back to make room for Lee. Now playing with the numbers advantage, Phil wanted to put everything towards scoring that second goal.
The next five minutes saw multiple attempts for Wrexham, who were just overwhelming the ten-man Dons with attacking efforts, but the Reds failed to finish any of them. This was best exemplified…I hate to say…by Mullin, who put a header over the bar that he really should have netted from his position in front of the goal. Dalby was swapped for Palmer shortly after that as Phil doubled down on his all-offense approach to the end of the match.
But this match still had more twists to it. Boyle made a poor trip of Matthew Dennis at 77’ (although on replay it was questionable if contact was actually made) and was shown his second yellow, resulting in the second red card of the game and the second for Boyle on the season, not long after he returned from his three-match ban for his first.
Wrexham, now also down to ten men, responded well. They defused the free kick from the red card and then earned a corner that only failed to yield a goal thanks to some quick defending from the Dons. The Dragons would be back in the box at 86’ when Barnett crossed well to Palmer, who was brought down by Cameron Norman in a potential penalty. That said, it was Normal who needed immediate medical attention, and would come off in visible pain. As for the possible penalty, the replay showed that the two players were tangling before the ball came in, so it’s really a 50-50 call.
Eight minutes were added to this intense second half and after a patient build-up, Wrexham earned a corner two minutes into the added time. The Dons dealt with it, keeping Wrexham from developing a real chance. Halfway through the added time, Gilbey earned a yellow, but the big highlight of added time came with just a minute to spare when Tomlinson came close to winning it, but Okonkwo saved it for a corner instead. Wrexham defended well after the scare and although there’d be one more yellow for the Dons (O’Hora), the match ended without a blockbuster finish as both sets of ten men walked away with a solitary point following a bombastic sequel to Wrexham’s first fixture of the season.
It’s a hard match to swallow in a lot of ways. Wrexham played very well across the board. I can’t even fault Boyle as the replay casts doubt over whether or not he deserved his second yellow and otherwise was excellent today (and since his return). But the fact is we should have won this game. We were the stronger side on the whole and the only reason we weren’t three or four goals ahead was due to poor finishes to excellent chances. Our finishing simply must improve if we’re hoping to grab the top spot on the table.
Because we were so strong, it makes my Man of the Match hard to pick. I would have said Okonkwo, who was put through the wringer today, but his questionable save drops him down under the efforts of Young and McClean. I’m giving it to captain Luke, who not only assisted with Wrexham’s only goal but played very well throughout the entire match, taking a shot on target and creating four chances as well. It’s fair to say he made the most out of his starting chance, something many fans have been pestering Phil to give him for a long time now.
Still, the point lifts us over Crewe by more than just goal differential and we still have a game in hand on our closest pursuers (and the league leader Stockport). Here’s the table:
Next Match:
Saturday 2/24 at Gillingham
We’re off to Gillingham this Saturday, who are fighting Harrogate Town for a playoff slot. In terms of goals scored per match, however, Gillingham rank dead last. They also have failed to score over their last two matches to boot. Wrexham are now fourth in goals scored per match and have strung together a modest three-game undefeated streak to nullify their recent losing streak. But Gillingham played well today against the dangerous Stockport County, holding them to a scoreless draw, so they may have more fight in them than their recent stats suggest.
