MK Dons manager Karl Robinson was ‘shell-shocked’ after his side’s goalless draw with Crawley Town on Saturday afternoon.
The Dons saw three efforts, all from Ryan Lowe, chalked off for offside while the experienced forward also saw a close-range shot expertly saved by Reds ‘keeper Paul Jones. Robinson’s men had several other clear-cut chances to grab the victory but, in the end, had to settle for a point – a result which keeps them in 10th place.
And, when speaking after the game, the 32-year-old manager revealed his frustration after a difficult afternoon at stadiummk. He said: “I’ve got a lot of respect for Richie Barker and his team but I think we’ve pummelled them today.
“I didn’t make a substitution in the last 15 minutes because I felt we were so dominant and I didn’t want to bring anybody new on because we were creating so many chances. I left it to the players on the pitch to get us that goal and I’m absolutely shell-shocked that it didn’t come.
“Lowe’s had a chance in the first half and he’s had three goals ruled out for offside, one of which was onside. Daniel Powell and Dean Bowditch both had chances in the first half, and then in the second Bowds has had another two and Chaddy’s had a couple as well. I’m not talking about good chances, I’m talking about gilt-edged chances.
“It’s frustrating because both the players and the fans don’t deserve it. We weren’t clinical enough, we understand that, but their keeper’s made a number of key saves, one of which was as good as I’ve seen for a long, long time, so we’re absolutely gutted.
“I don’t think the players could have done anymore apart from taking their chances. That was as dominant a performance as you’re going to see around the country today.”
The Dons, then, head into Tuesday night’s clash with Swindon Town with their minds solely set on a victory, especially as Kevin MacDonald’s side currently occupy that final play-off spot.
The men from MK1 are seven points adrift of the Robins with just five matches left to play and manager Robinson admitted that Tuesday is ‘win or bust’ for his side, as they look to keep their promotion aspirations alive.
“Tuesday’s game does become a lot more important now – it’s win or we’re out, simple as that. There’s no holds barred for us now, we need to win our games, nothing less.
“If we play like that from now until the end of the season then we’ll win all of our games and that’ll be enough. Sheffield United have failed to win again today and Tranmere have dropped out of it too. We are in a better position now than we were at 3pm – we’re not out of it yet.
“If we beat Swindon on Tuesday then we’ll be four points behind sixth with four games to go. We have players coming back to fitness and we’re getting stronger and stronger as a group, I just hope it isn’t too little too late.”
