After consecutive victories over relegation-threatened Gillingham and Doncaster Rovers, Town head to other end of the table and a visit to MK Dons, and TomTheWriter assesses the mood in the opposition camp.

With six wins from his first eight games as Town manager, an EFL high since his arrival in late December, Kieran McKenna and the Blues find themselves on the road again with 7,000 fans joining them for the relatively short trip to Stadium MK.

Their opponents, MK Dons, have improved exponentially on last season, sitting in third place and eyeing up an automatic promotion spot.

This season, Scott Twine has been creative and electric in front of goal, Dan Harvie has offered width and attacking threat from the left with Dean Lewington rolling back the years in the defence.

Liam Manning

“Right now, I’m more positive about autos never mind play-offs. [Liam] Manning and the team are showing more recently that they can work problems out and apply better tactics than the opposition”, “What I've noticed is Manning has brought in players this window that are slightly more in-tune to his way”, “As much as Manning brushed over the loss of players in the presser, it’s knocked the stuffing out of us, certainly in the short term. We looked blunt, lack of ideas, poor on quality.”

Arriving at the beginning of August, Manning has turned MK Dons from a well-oiled possession-based team, to an attractive attacking threat no matter the opposition.

“I really hope Manning doesn't come out with something like ‘We have to learn from our mistakes’. We lost to a bottom of the league side [Doncaster Rovers]”, “Manning was a coach at Ipswich the same time [Connor] Wickham was breaking through the youth ranks”, “I've got full confidence in Manning/ [sporting director Liam] Sweeting etc though. Whoever comes in will be mustard, I'm sure of it.”

Despite the busy January window, which saw seven arrivals and eight departures, Manning has still kept his MK Dons side rolling through the games, even with the constant change in players available to him.

The State of Play

“Happy with what we’ve got, now for the assault on the automatic promotion spots”, “Now that we've got a foot in the door for promotion we need to give ourselves the best chance, and for if we do get promoted”, “We're fifth in the table more than halfway through the season, our best chance of promotion since 2015. Players have worked hard to get to this point.”

As is stands, the Dons find themselves in third place in League One with 16 wins, eight draws and seven defeats from their 31 games.

“We are in a promotion race, do we want to go up or are we sticking to the turnover plan come what May?”, “Now we're starting to talk about seven figures for players plural. Keep that up and maybe get a promotion in and potentially in a few years amd you're talking about a full team of seven-figure players”, “Whilst the obvious contenders for promotion are plenty this season and with better pedigrees and bigger budgets, we have somehow got ourselves in with a fighting chance of the play-offs.”

MK sit six places and nine points above Town heading into the fixture on Saturday with a Blues victory over the hosts closing the gap on the play-offs and the Dons themselves.

The Squad

Strength-wise, MK Dons have an abundance of attacking threat at their disposal, with Twine being the most impressive of their options.

Their weakest position looks to be their left-hand side of the midfield, with only Harvie a natural in that position. If an injury was too occur to him, then they wouldn’t have adequate cover to deal with it.

MK Dons fans have found a lot to be positive about this season. “This window will give us a clear indication of the strength of the club’s ambitions. The quality of recruitment has increased tenfold since Sweeting arrived”, “It’s really reassuring to know we have that strength in depth as and when required”, “Our strength in depth in midfield is ludicrous really.”

However, they have still found areas to be improved on. “Oxford came out and showed fight and all we have shown is weakness”, “I hate to identify one player that was a possible weakness, I’m just going to leave it at, I don’t think our left side worked together very well and did not look that assured”, “There's no glaring weakness to the squad - except maybe understudy goalkeeper and one more left wing-back.”

Fleetwood Town 1-1 MK Dons

“Conditions played a massive part, obviously. Had that been 'normal' conditions I think we'd have comfortably won that”, “The last 20 minutes aside from the Twine chance was spent passing it sideways and backwards on the halfway line and in our own half despite the obvious stupidity considering the conditions and our defence occupying the worst half of the pitch”, “That is my only criticism of Manning. His subs have always been robotic never reactive.”

“As the game wore on I got more and more settled with a point. I'm disappointed but if that pitch is even just a 5/10 instead of a 2/10 we could've been comfortable”, “I still say [Jamie] Cumming should have done better for their goal, by his standards that was a poor goal to concede”, “We played some really nice stuff tonight that the pitch just stopped in its tracks and the one time we could have used the pitch to hold the ball up was when Twine rounded the keeper.”

On Tuesday night, MK Dons travelled to relegation contenders Fleetwood Town and came away with a 1-1 draw on a mud-heavy pitch. Harry Darling with the goal for the visitors.

MK Dons 2-1 Lincoln City

“I know [Troy] Parrott hasn’t had loads in the way of attacking output but his defensive work has been fantastic this half”, “Not sure on balance whether we deserved the win, but hey we won anyway”, “Very strange game today. Everything was so flat in the first half (players and crowd). We were walking the ball forwards at times. Credit to Manning and the players in the second half as we were much better.”

“Huge difference this season in our mentality. We were poor first half but managed to crawl it back. Better second half, but we are starting to show real hunger to get those three points”, “Lincoln pressed us very well in the first half but maybe ran out of steam”, “If we hold on it will show we've genuinely progressed from that side that would always capitulate late on when only holding a goal advantage.”

At the weekend, the Dons bounced back from their previous home defeat to Doncaster Rovers with a 2-1 victory over Lincoln City.

Goalkeepers

“A few of those loanees would be within our reach in terms of a permanent deal - Troy Parrott and Jamie Cumming would definitely be possible”, “I liked [Andrew] Fisher but Cumming is a massive upgrade. Unfortunately, I suspect he'll be on loan to a Championship club next season and we'll be looking for another”, “Something I've been particularly impressed by with Cumming is how he looks up to distribute quickly.”

Having spent the first part of the season with Gillingham, Cumming was snapped up on a six-month loan deal from Chelsea after the departure of Fisher to Swansea City. Has looked impressive in his early showings, but conceded a sloppy goal against Fleetwood.

“We need to make sure we have a suitable replacement in ready to go - and I'm not talking [Franco] Ravizzoli or [Laurie] Walker, both of whom aren't League One standard IMO”, “Either way, I don't think anyone would be happy for Walker or Ravizzoli to take over as number one for the rest of the season given how uncomfortable they looked playing”, “Ravizzoli is woeful.”

Back-up goalkeeper Ravizzoli has featured on five occasions this season with one of those appearances having been in the league. The Argentinian shot-stopper has struggled with MK’s style this season, but is an adequate stand-in.

Defenders

“With Fisher, he'd often hold onto the ball, wait for everyone to 'reset', then cautiously play it out from the back to Darling”, “Darling broke the lines so many times to turn defence into attack and was contesting everything in the air when we came under pressure late on”, “Can't afford to lose the likes of Twine or Darling.”

One of the more impressive defenders in League One this season, Darling has transitioned into one of the best centre-backs outside the Premier League with his marauding runs and goalscoring ability. Will be a big threat on Saturday.

“Depending on [Aden] Baldwin, we can probably get away with not bringing a centre-back in, but ideally we should”, “The shift to the four made no sense with Baldwin on the bench”, “Darling out injured, Baldwin who knows where.”

Another player to have been used sporadically this season is Baldwin after his summer arrival from Bristol City. Hasn’t been in the squad for the last five games due to an ankle injury suffered in training.

Tennai Watson

“Special shout out for [Tennai] Watson too, who had a really difficult first half (don’t think the strong wind helped) but second half he was top quality”, “Watson got caught out ball watching”, “Feel for Watson a little, who has been very good recently but to have such decent competition for place can't be a bad thing.”

After the loan spell of Peter Kioso was ended by Luton Town, Watson stepped up to be the new right wing-back for the rest of the season. Now has Kaine Kesler Hayden as competition.

“He looks a real handful, could be better than Ethan Laird as he's bound to be used in a wing-back role”, “Excited with this Kesler deal. Clearly very highly-rated by Villa and has made the bench for them for the last few games”, “The Athletic reporting we're trying to sort a deal for Aston Villa's Kaine Kesler on loan. Right-back/wing-back. Heard good things, quite highly-rated and performed well at Swindon for his first loan earlier in the season.”

After his recall by Aston Villa in January from Swindon Town, it was heavily rumoured that Hayden would be making the jump to League One or even the Championship. Now he finds himself with MK Dons and could be very dangerous against Ipswich on the weekend.

Centre-Backs

“I was saying only last week after the Adebayo Akinfenwa incident game, how good Warren O'Hora has been this season, definition of the unsung hero, goes about his work superbly every week, so pleased he was the match-winner”, “O'Hora has really stepped up to the mark this season and is doing a great job”, “I agree he is really impressive and comes across well when interviewed. I think he could be captain material in the future.”

Young defender O’Hora made his loan move permanent 12 months ago and has come on leaps and bounds since then. Usually found either in the middle or on the right of a back three.

“How good has this guy been in the last few weeks! Can't remember the last time he put a foot wrong and his passing has really come on leaps and bounds”, “Last year we converted O'Hora to a permanent deal and made four permanent signings”, “Thought he did a great job at that left centre-back role.”

With Lewington known for his passing and Darling for his adventurous runs, O’Hora flies under the radar slightly in the defence. He ranks very highly for both short passing and pass completion rate.

Dean Lewington

“Lewington will still be playing when he's 50”, “Lewie though never had it all his own way, two or three of his passes went astray”, “All too often he'll have space or an opportunity to pass it, but instead he shields the ball up, lets others close him down and ends up doing a Lewington flop to try and get out of it.”

At the age of 37, Lewington has been rolling back the years under both Russell Martin and Manning with his expert ability on the ball and strong defensive positioning.

“Dean Lewington does have a pub named after him now”, “Dean Lewington has been diving several times a match since the Blair government. We can't afford to be too purist about it!”, “Lewie can’t go on forever.”

It is unknown how many years Lewington has left in him, but if MK do get themselves promoted this season he will surely be itching to play in the Championship.

Midfielders

“I thought he had his best game for us today and was the standard performer, even in that pretty drab first half. Broke up play really well and seemed to be everywhere”, “Thought he done well today, dogged, determined display, like a Jack Russell constantly nipping at your ankles”, “I wouldn't call [Conor] Coventry a replacement for [Matt] O'Riley either.”

After spending the first half of the season on loan at Peterborough United, West Ham midfielder Coventry has been drafted into the MK Dons squad after the loss of O’Riley to Celtic and Ethan Robson to Blackpool. Likely to start on Saturday.

“Getting [David] Kasumu fit would probably do better that anyone we can afford to buy for our midfield”, “If worse comes, David Kasumu will have a pal in the treatment room. If the best comes, we get promoted”, “We could deal with this if Kasumu wasn't so injury prone and God knows how long he is out for this time.”

Like former Town midfielder Emyr Huws, Kasumu has been cursed by injuries in the last few years of his career. Having missed most of 2021 with various problems, he suffered a hamstring pull against Accrington Stanley and hasn’t featured in the last seven games and is not yet ready for a return.

“I think [Hiram] Boateng might get the nod over Coventry for this one just because him and Josh McEachran have played a few games together in the Papa John’s Trophy”, “It wouldn't surprise me if Boateng starts over Coventry this week just as we look to get him up to speed with our system and style”, “For all Boateng is good and a fans’ favourite, we can do better.”

Usually seen coming off the bench as an impact sub, Boateng hasn’t started a league game since December. Likely be on the bench once again on Saturday.

“[Matt] Smith and [Dan] Kemp are a bit gamble/wait and see types”, “Smith looks a real player. Not too dissimilar in role to Kasumu”, “Kesler on loan, Smith on a permanent, so far so good, still two players light?”

Another new signing made in January, Smith has arrived on a permanent deal from Manchester City after a six-month loan spell with Hull City. Made his debut on Tuesday night, so could be in line for a start on Saturday.

“Dan Kemp came on and made his debut with two minutes of normal time left at the expense of Twine who look equally annoyed and shattered”, “Think Kemp could be a really key player for us. Think he’ll do well here. Looks the type of player that will flourish under our style”, “Kemp's highlights look class. He reminds me of Scott Twine, but left-footed so cutting inside from the right like O'Riley used to do.”

A surprise signing in January, Kemp was snapped up permanently from Leyton Orient on deadline day, despite only scoring once in League Two this season. Came off the bench at the weekend, so is likely to be a super sub for the season.

“The ones we'd have absolutely no chance of would be [Theo] Corbeanu and Kesler, both of whom I expect will be in and around Wolves/Villa's first team next season”, “Corbeanu and Cumming had rave reviews from their previous League One clubs”, “Another fantastic performance tonight. He just looks a class above this league. I've yet to see an opposing defender be able to keep up with him, he always seems to find an extra yard and rarely fails to beat a man he's taking on.”

Another new signing, Corbeanu was with Sheffield Wednesday for the first part of the 2021/22 season from Wolves, before being recalled and sent out to MK Dons. Has fared much better with the Dons than he did with Wednesday. Another dangerous threat to deal with.

Winger

“As things stand, if either Watson or Harvie get injured, we're pretty screwed, so we ideally need cover in both of these positions”, “Good player and had a very good game yesterday. Great wind-up merchant as proven by the red card a couple of weeks ago”, “Absolutely terrible and embarrassingly bad at diving.”

Scotland midfielder Harvie has been an ever-present at left wing-back this season, picking up three assists without scoring so far. The battle between him and Wes Burns on Saturday will be interesting.

“I know there are lots of Harvie detractors, but today was a good example of the positive influence he has on this team. He was aggressive, effective in possession and strong in defence”, “Never understood the criticism, he’s a really good League One wing-back! Consistently puts in tireless 90-minute performances up and down all game and is strong and committed in challenges”, “Definitely a better player than when he first came here.”

Harvie has only missed two league games this season, one of those the reverse fixture at Portman Road in August. He will be looking to impress once again against the Tractor Boys, having scored their equalising goal at Stadium MK last season.

Centre Midfielder

“There must be a doubt about McEachran as he limped off at Adams Park, although I think it was more precautionary”, “Big gamble to rely on McEachran's fitness/availability for the rest of the season for such a crucial role”, “Brilliant today. To be fair, has been very good most of the season, he was just competing with Robson up until now who was also performing well.”

Was on the bench for the game against Fleetwood Town on Tuesday night, having started the previous four games. Had been dealing with a small injury, but looks to be over that now.

“He’s always been class”, “Absolutely fantastic tonight. Start him every game from now on”, “Wild shots, poor passes, lack of urgency. Only players that come away from today with any credit are Corbeanu and McEachran.”

Another player not to have featured against Town in the reverse fixture, McEachran will be hoping to make as much of an impact as O’Riley and Robson did in the middle of the park in August.

Attack

“The thought of [Mo] Eisa playing with Twine and Kemp behind him looks great, but then what about Troy and Theo?”, “I would go for striker as Eisa and Wickham are not enough”, “He was poor today, the header in the first half sums the whole game up. Not sure his movement in the penalty area is that good either.”

One of four impressive strikers in the MK Dons ranks this season, Eisa has seven goals to his name and one assist. Started the game against Fleetwood, having been on the bench for the previous match.

Academy Graduate, Returning Loanee

“I would have liked to have seen another proven striker as I’m not convinced yet about Wickham, but there is the potential that it could work and if it does, well who knows where this team can go?”, “I think to sign a fully fit Wickham In his prime form would be out of the question, he’s a Premier League potential player”, “We lost [Max] Watters but gained Wickham.”

Ex-Town academy striker Wickham made a name for himself at just 17 years old, scoring a hat-trick for Town against Doncaster. Since then, he has played at Premier League level with Sunderland and Crystal Palace, before injury forced him down the ladder.

Troy Parrott

“We only play one striker though and can easily use Parrott or Theo there if we need to”, “His best game in months, big improvement on recent games especially. Looked very good playing on the left and really troubled their defence”, “I’ve slated him a lot recently but fair play, tonight he was excellent.”

Parrott struggled at Town last season after his loan arrival from Tottenham, scoring only twice in 18 games. Now on loan with MK Dons, he has three goals and five assists, playing across various attacking positions.

Strikers

“We can’t keep relying on Twine to show how it’s done”, “I don't see why we can't go and buy one of the best players from a lower League One/top League Two side. We did so with Twine and [Scott] Fraser and they worked out great”, “Twine is our biggest 'asset' since Dele [Alli] and a low release clause would be pretty gutting.”

Scott Twine

Star player Twine has been imperious since his arrival from Swindon Town, already playing like an attacking midfielder who should be in the Championship. His form and fitness will be key to MK Dons’ promotion charge.

“Even Twine, who has the best shot on him, all too often mis-kicks it”, “I also think Scott Twine is maybe better than O’Riley too, which is pretty incredible. God knows how much he is worth”, “The number of runs made that we don't pick up would frustrate any man but those same runs are what makes the space for us to have Twine already in double figures.”

If Ipswich can keep Twine quiet on Saturday, unlike back in August, they may prevent a lot of attacks. Twine scored an impressive free-kick back at Portman Road with his dead ball abilities something that needs to be stopped.

MK Dons Fans on ITFC

“On to our home game with Ipswich on Saturday and apparently what feels like their cup final with 7,000 Tractor Boys fans heading to SMK”, “Apparently Ipswich sold Scott Fraser for more than they paid, likely mid-six figures. We're probably getting £30,000 out of it or something”, “Of the chasing pack I think Ipswich are the biggest threat, but I think we have enough about us to stay in the pack until the end of the season”, “Portsmouth, Sheffield Wednesday and Ipswich aren’t even the play-offs, goes to show how strong the league is this year.”

Last Time Out — Ipswich Town 2-2 MK Dons

“A good point and nearly won it at the end”, “If Ipswich don’t win the league they’ve underachieved. This is a big point”, “Ipswich have to go up having spent a king’s ransom this summer, but I thought we were far and away the better team on what was an absolutely fantastic game today. Another 42 like this please Mr Manning.”

“Great game today. The team played brilliantly and we were again unlucky not win IMHO. Ipswich were a very good team, probably the best we have played so far”, “Scott Fraser was a great player for us last season, so I’m grateful for his input last season, but I have to say that I was pleased when he went off and Scott Twine definitely looks like an upgrade”, “Ipswich have some really talented attacking players who are a real threat on the counter.”

Back in August, Ipswich and MK Dons played out an entertaining 2-2 draw at Portman Road, filled with spectacular goals and defensive mistakes, with Macauley Bonne striking twice for the Blues.

Websites

The only forum for a MK Dons fan is the Concrete Roundabout. A detailed account of all things MK Dons, with a large number of viewers each week.

Matchday Images and Action Images

Super_Cooper added 15:51 - Feb 11 "Big club" MK Dons(!) think, because we are taking 7000 there on Saturday, this is our "cup final". Laughable. They can only dream of taking that many to a home game let alone away! We are massive!! COYB!
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Suffolk_n_Proud added 16:19 - Feb 11 We are 6 points from the play off spots. Tomorrow, we could be 6 points from automatic.
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dominiciawful added 17:24 - Feb 11 Stole a Football League place.
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Europablue added 00:28 - Feb 12 As far as I can tell, we are only taking 7000 supporters there because they have low demand for home tickets. I'm hoping our cup final will be the playoff final!
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muccletonjoe added 09:51 - Feb 12 Perhaps we can steal that hope today.
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Umros added 20:02 - Feb 12 Cup final ha!! Cheek, could have sold more but they couldn't face the embarrassing scenario of outselling the home, they only just did anyway (allegedly - - looked less to me). They won't go up, very average indeed. Fake club.
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