Port Vale 0-1 AFC Wimbledon

Goodbye January. Hello February.

On a cold and snowy Tuesday night in deepest Port Vale, AFC Wimbledon did something increasingly rare.

We won a game of football.

And we did it with two players who, according to the rumour merchants, (👀 🦛🇱🇧) had already packed their bags for pastures new.

The transfer window slammed shut at 7pm on Monday. A mere 24 hours after leaving the club to join relegation rivals Omar Bugiel and Myles Hippolyte started for the Dons anyway.

Chaos agents. Or, more usefully, free misinformation for the Port Vale scouts who’d presumably spent the previous 48 hours preparing for a different starting XI.

Strategic ambiguity. Johnnie Jackson and Craig Cope’s finest work.

The Team

JJ made four changes from the Bolton defeat. Zack Nelson earned his first Dons start. Bugiel, Hippolyte and Junior Nkeng all returned. Reeves ©, Hackford, Febcock and Asiimwe dropped to the bench.

New signing Layton Stewart, the Professor Layton of the forward line, here to solve puzzles and presumably ask “why is our home form like this?”, was not in the squad.

He was, at that moment, somewhere in Switzerland, contemplating flights and presumably still shopping for watches he’d like when his goals keep us up.

The Match

The Dons started brightly. Tilley tested Gauci inside five minutes. Nkeng and Seddon combined well down the left. Browne held off three challenges before his shot was blocked, the ball breaking to Tilley who smashed it into the side netting.

Nelson and Nkeng both had penalty appeals. The referee was unmoved. Goalless at half-time.

Port Vale came out swinging after the break. Set pieces rained in. The Dons defence held. Neither side created anything clear-cut.

With ten minutes left, Ogundere’s cross found Bugiel’s head. Wide.

It looked like a point.

Then, 87th minute. Smith finds Febcock in acres of space. Touch. Finish. Bottom corner.

His first League One goal. The away end loses its mind. Four minutes added. The Dons hold on.

Three points. A late winner. The travelling 121 rewarded for their faith, their layers, and their commitment to public transport when fixtures are hastily rearranged. They deserved this.

What the Manager Said

On the victory:

“You can’t really beat a late winner, can you?”

For the record we are happy with winning goals in any minute of the game.

On MayFebcock:

“He’s got that. He’s shown that before. Obviously, he scored two really famous goals.”

He did not elaborate on which goals. We assume he means the ones people remember against Franchise.

On Reeves © being benched:

“He’s the captain and the leader of this team... He was excellent in the support he gave his teammates. He led from behind.”

Leadership from the bench. Tactical maturity. JJ actually doing some squad rotation like it’s a genuine concept and not just something managers tell their kids about in fairy stories.

On Layton Stewart:

“I think he’s travelling tomorrow morning. We won’t get back to London until probably early hours. He’ll be in training with the boys on Thursday.”

A point to prove. A plane to catch. A puzzle to solve.

Womble of the Week: Callum MayFebcock.

You don’t score a late winner away from home in the snow and not get this. Fresh off the bench. Calm in the box. Clinical with the finish.

His first League One goal. Hopefully not his last.

Closing Thoughts

This was not a vintage performance. It didn’t need to be.

We defended well, pressed from the front, and took our moment when it arrived.

In a season that has often felt like two steps forward and three steps sideways, and two steps backward this was simple. This was effective. This was away points.

Now comes the hard part.

Saturday. Plough Lane. Reading. The home form that dare not speak its name.

If we can carry this momentum, the defensive solidity, the late threat, the belief that games can be won, then maybe, just maybe, we will have a shot on target at home and possibly - a home goal.

Layton Stewart might get his debut. The Professor might provide answers. The home fans might witness something resembling attacking intent.

Hopefully February will be kinder than January.

WombleWorld

Callum Maycock has trademarked the phrase “popping up in that little pocket” and will be licensing it to JJ for future press conferences to raise money for WAWF.