MK Dons manager Karl Robinson dedicated his side’s FA Cup Second Round win over AFC Wimbledon to the fans and the whole of Milton Keynes when speaking to the media after game.
Jon Otsemobor’s 92nd minute strike earned the Dons a historic victory in front of a bumper-crowd of 16,459 at stadiummk, and secured a meeting with Sheffield Wednesday in the next round of England’s most prestigious Cup competition.
And with the whole country watching, Robinson was unsurprisingly delighted to be able to walk away from MK1 with a victory that will no doubt be savoured by many Dons fans for years to come.
The 32-year-old manager said: “I think we’re all glad this game has taken its course and we can now move on. This result, though, was for our fans and the city of Milton Keynes. The criticism this place gets are undeserved and so it’s nice to get this game out of the way and to have won.
“It’s been a tough week, a really tough week. It’s been enjoyable but it’s also been very difficult as well. But it’s been a good learning curve for me. I’ve got a dream of being here for a long, long time and know I’ve got a lot more learning to do.
“This last week has given me a great chance to look at myself and put myself under pressure. If I’ve offended anybody in the way of conducted myself, I apologise, but I’d do the same again. Maybe I still need to improve but this has all been part of my learning.”
The game itself was a fairly cagey one, with both teams limited to only a handful of clear cut chances. But despite the tension on the pitch, both sets of supporters around stadiummk conducted themselves in a sensible manner, much to the relief of boss Robinson.
“The game typified two sets of teams that have great hunger and desire for the club that they play for and I think the two teams can walk away from this stadium very proud of each other and that’s all I wanted.
“I wanted this game to go smoothly and I wanted everyone to conduct themselves in a manner that was right for the English game and I thought we all did that. I know that a few fans from both clubs came on the field of play, which you can’t condone, but considering football fans have had criticism in the past few months today, other than very small instances, went really well.
“The way the AFC Wimbledon fans and players conducted themselves at the end should be applauded as well, along with our fans too. This is a good day for English football and I know some people will disagree but ultimately, today, football has been the winner.”
The Dons will now travel to Hillsborough in the New Year to do battle with the Championship Owls in the Third Round, a tie Robinson is looking forward too for personal reasons as well as footballing ones.
“I love the FA Cup and I love being in it. Hillsborough is a great place to go, especially for me, being a Liverpool fan from Liverpool; it’s always a tie I enjoy.
“I always go and have a minute to myself while I’m there, I always have done. It’s quite fitting for me to go there in the FA Cup as a manager. It’ll give me a chance to show my respect once again.”
