On The Ball written by Gareth Payne and Gemma Gifford.
A good start for City but with two early injuries the home side took the initiative and changed the game in the second half - the bright Jason Puncheon with a curling free-kick and a debatable penalty decision gave the Dons the points.
Final score: MK Dons 2 City 1
90+2: Holt challenged on edge of box - another free-kick. Martin and Lappin standing over it. Lappin tries curled effort but it's high and wide of upright.
90th: City have some possession in the Dons' half and Martin pushes forward and has an effort collected at second time by Willy Gueret. Late sub for MK Dons - Partridge replaces Gobern.
85th: City have free-kick just outside the D - Martin fouled and takes. His low effort goes through the wall but Gueret is there to make a low save.
84th: "The ball changed direction - Martin got the ball first. No question." - Lisa
83rd: MK Dons are full of confidence at the moment with City not able to get their foot on the ball.
82nd: Johnson is causing havoc again, looking to break through the centre and digging an effort which is a comfortable height for the tall Forster.
80th: 10, 354 is the attendance tonight - 1,525 of those being Canaries.
76th: Peter Leven rolls the ball home to Forster's left and gives the Dons the lead.
75th: Martin challenges Gobern and the assistant linesman flags for a penalty after freferee signals he got the ball but a penalty is awarded.
73rd: The ball broke for the home side on the edge of the box but luckily the ball went wide of the goal. The Dons' have made a change in formation with Leven coming into centre midfield with Puncheon moving up into attack to partner Wilbraham and Johnson moves to left flank.
71st: Luke Daley wins the ball in the Dons' half and looks to skip away from the defence but Powell comes across and wins the ball from the young striker.
69th: Double substitution for MK Dons - Wilbraham and Leven replace Ibehere and Luke Chadwick.
68th: A good ball by McVeigh releases Daley but his cross, come shot is a comfortable for Gueret. Dons look to break and force another corner.
66th: Another Dons corner after Adeyemi blocked a cross. Puncheon takes and it's cleared near post by Martin.
61st: Daley makes a run down the right and puts in a low ball into the box which Holt does well to gather, unfortunately his lobbed effort is any easy catch for Gueret and the assistant refereee has put his flag up any way for an offiside. City have changed to a 4-4-2 formation - Daley up front with Holt. McVeigh on right with Smith and Adeyemi in centre.
59th: Grant Holt header requires a good save from Will Gueret in the Dons' goal.
57th: Nelson replaced by Michael Spillane - looks to be a result of his earlier knock.
56th: Gleeson took a tumble under a challenge from Lappin and Otsemobor. Free-kick taken by Puncheon and he draws the Dons level a right-footed curling effort past Forster.
53rd: MK Dons corner from the left which is punched clear by Forster. The home side win a further two flag-kicks the last headed over by Darren Powell.
50th: City are managing to clear any MK Dons attack but our only releasing hopeful balls up to Holt, which aren't finding their target at present. Nelson is down at the moment receiving treatment on his ankle.
47th: Inter-changing on edge of City's box by the Dons and Gleeson missed a good opportunity with ball going wide of Forster's right-hand post.
We've now kicked off and there's steady rain here at stadiummk.
Teams have now emerged for second half - no further changes seem iminent.
"I think we're playing some good attacking football on the break, when was the last time we looked so good playing fast one touch football on the break?" - IMT
"We are going to lose unless the team remember that they can attack." - jarabe
"I hate how we have this horrible tendency to sit so deep. It's inviting trouble - we're only one up. We still need to be pushing and creating not just reacting." - Lisa
Half-Time: Those three minutes pass without an action and City lead 1-0 at the break, fully deserved after an impressive opening, which was curtailed after the injuries to Stephen Hughes and Adam Drury. Lambert only has one change left to use in the second half.
45th - A minimum of three minutes to be added on after the two injuries and substitutions.
44th - MK Dons win a corner, to be taken from the left, dangerous and retrieved far side, cut back for Puncheon to hit but Forster saves well down low at his near post.
43th - Some chat from yesterday and earlier today about where Chris Martin's best position has been dug up and finished off "Well, what do we know!? lol" by IMT
40th - Puncheon has been the creative force in midfield for the Dons so far and he lets fly with a right foot shot but it rises up and over Forster's bar, but the midfielder isn't shy about taking aim from range.
36th - City guilty of giving possession away too cheaply when they get it at the moment, need to calm it down and take the momentum out of the hosts play, which they are gradually building.
33rd - City counter after being on the back foot. Lappin's long ball out of defence allows Holt to stretch his legs and chase down big Darren Powell, who falls under the legal pressure and Holt comes away with the ball and makes tracks into the penalty area but is dispossessed before he can get a shot away.
30th - "With these enforced changes why not go 4-4-2?" - jigs69 - The argument against that would be why change what had worked. The three in midfield have commanded and dictated the play, with Daley, Martin and midfield runners providing support to Holt, so why alter. MK Dons have been the better side for the last few minutes, as the changes bed in.
28th - Puncheon wanted a ball to himself there, despite City challenges he came out with it and unleashed a fiercec left-footed shot that Forster got behing and gathered at the second attempt at the feet of the incoming Chadwick.
26th - Second enforced change for Paul Lamber, Adam Drury is withdrawn, he hasn't looked comfortable since the earlier injury and Tom Adeyemi replaces him. Simon Lappin drops back to left-back with Adeyemi in centre midfield alongside fellow Academy product Korey Smith and fellow sub Paul McVeigh.
24th - Corner to MK Dons, Jason Puncheon over to take from the right. Referee East just sorting out some jostling between players and Holt is dumped on the floor, free-kick to City.
20th - Hughes leaves the pitch on a stretcher and is taken straight down the tunnel, Paul McVeigh is his direct replacement in centre midfield.
18th - Holt goes in the box, but doesn't appeal, despite mine complaints of a 'push in the back referee'. Again the Dons struggling to deal with decent deliveries from wide areas. Luke Chadwick goes into referee East's notebook for a foul on Hughes, which requires a stretcher for the Scottish midfielder, who looks in some pain.
17th - Drury is allowed to return, but is limping quite badly, we have McVeigh, Adeyemi and Spillane warming up in front of us.
14th - This time Holt does meet the cross, the big striker jumping high at the far post but his header is deflected over and Hughes will take a corner from the near side, the right. Adam Drury is ushered off the pitch on the far side, as he lays down with a leg injury. Simon Spencer the physio goes round to treat him but City will have to play with ten men for the time being.
13th - Martin heads wide at the far post. City spread the ball wide, Smith invited Otsemobor to attack the space in front of him and the right-back swung in a good cross, which eluded Holt, who was having his shirt pulled and Martin ghosted in at the far post but guided his wide the wrong side of the post from a City perspective.
11th - Korey Smith looks to have been deployed in a screening role in front of the back four with Hughes and Lappin playing ahead of him in the centre of the park.
9th - Unrepeatable chants coming from the City fans regarding the home support. Another huge travelling support, must be over a thousand Canary fans here tonight. MK Dons been averaging about 9,000 from their three home league matches this season.
7th - "Well that was good." - jarabe
6th - Daley wins a corner, which Hughes takes right-footed, a stooped headed clearance at the near post but City keep the pressure on until Lappin attempts a cross with his swinger, the right foot and out it goes for a goal kick.
4th - Lewis Gobern with a late challenge on Adam Drury and the midfielder is just warned, get the feeling if that challenge came in 20 minutes later, a yellow card would have been produced. The pass to him was underhit slightly by Stephen Hughes, inviting Gobern to make the sliding tackle but was late in on Drury. Formation looks like a 4-5-1/4-3-3 with Martin left and Daley right and Grant Holt as the main striker through the middle.
1st - MK Dons get us underway but a false start declared by Roger East our referee for tonight and City lead. Chris Martin with a lovely strike, reminiscent of his JPT goal, cutting inside and curling with his right foot. Luke Daley on his first league start shuffled the ball inside to fellow Academy product Korey Smith, who spread the ball wide left to Martin, who appears to be playing on the left-hand side of midfield and Martin with a precise shot. We think the goal was timed at just 16 seconds.
MK Dons make three changes, top scorer Jermaine Easter is out injured and replaced in attack by Jabo Ibehre. Defender Danny Woodwards is also ruled out through and midfielder Luke Howell is suspended. Darren Powell formerly of Charlton Athletic and Lewis Gobern start in their places.
Just been treated to Luke Chadwick's Treble Mix Up, which were Champagne Supernova by Oasis, Don't Stop Me Now by Queen and I Know You Want Me by Pitbull - anybody know the last one?
"So basically if we win by 3 clear goals tonight we go 7th - a win by less and we go 8th. If either of those happen I might just start thinking we've turned a corner and that bright light on the horizon isn't just another false dawn. But, and it's a BIG BUT, when was the last time we managed to take an opportunity like this? I can't remember it! So for me tonight is certainly a crunch game. It may not be 'do or die' a la Fulham or Charlton but it's definitely a real test of our mettle under new management." - Lisa
Team news from stadiumMK, where Paul Lambert makes two changes from the goalless draw against Walsall, in come Luke Daley and Chris Martin for Paul McVeigh and Jamie Cureton, who both drop to the bench.
CITY: Forster, Otsemobor, Drury (Adeyemi 26), Nelson (Spillane 57), Hughes (McVeigh 20), Holt (c), Martin, Lappin, Daley, Smith, Askou. Subs not used: Rudd (GK), Cureton, Whaley, McDonald.
MK Dons: Gueret, Lewington (c), Doumbe, McCracken, Gleeson, Johnson, Gobern (Patridge 90), Puncheon, Ibehre (Wilbraham 69), Powell, Chadwick (Leven 69). Subs not used: Searle (GK), Davis, Carrington, Swailes.
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