Milton Keynes Dons

MK Dons Under-18s suffered a 1-0 defeat in their trip to Leyton Orient which consequently put an end to their four-game winning streak across all competitions.

John Bitting’s boy’s journey to London left them disappointed after a narrow 1-0 defeat to the O’s, who claimed their second win within the EFL Youth Alliance Merit League Two division.

Orient sought redemption following their heavy 6-0 defeat to Exeter City a week prior, and their mission was achieved against the fatigued young Dons, who had a rapid turnaround from their Thursday evening EFL Youth Alliance Cup Final victory just days before the league clash.

A lively start from the travelling team put them on the front-foot during the opening exchanges of the skirmish. However, this sharp start wasn’t continued throughout the match and the hosts were able to take advantage of that.

Within the first-half Leyton Orient had opened the scoring following a mistake from MK Dons. 1-0

The second stage saw a much closer contest with a balanced approach from either side, who had set their sights on victory. This later led to stalemate within the second 45 minutes of play as neither team could break down the other.

However, Orient’s chance taken within the first-half was enough to award them with the spoils at the end of 90 minutes played.

Questioned about this fixture Lead PDP Coach John Bitting had this to say “It was a disappointing result in terms of the way we lost the match.

“We started off really well, within the first ten minutes we were quite lively. But, after that, we lacked a real presence and the ability to work together as a team. We became quite isolated and individualised.

“A team such as Leyton Orient are very athletic, they like to play direct football and catch you on the break. We made a mistake, which led to them scoring and the second-half provided opportunities for both teams within the final-third, but nothing really came of it.

“You could say it was a game that highlighted the near end of the season and one for us that was played very soon after the Thursday night EFL Youth Alliance Cup win. We now have to move on to the next game, which is our Gwen and Jim Mann’s Academy Showcase match against Manchester United on Sunday 30 April.”

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MK Dons: Stacey, Scholtz, Lucas, Stirland, Sinclair-Linton, Lewis-Burgess, Matthews, Troso, Adepoju, Daffern, Medwinter



Subs: Wood, Bedford, Boyce, Clark-Anderson, Tripp