Karl Robinson praised his players for their second half response following MK Dons’ 2-1 victory over Swindon Town on Saturday afternoon.
An Antony Kay header followed by an unstoppable stoppage-time strike from George Baldock saw the Dons overcome Michael Smith’s first-half opener and secure an important three points at the County Ground.
The result saw the men from MK1 climb two places to seventh in the Sky Bet League 1 table and keep the gap between them and Peterborough United to just six points, heading into the final 11 games of the season.
“The way the players responded in the second half was sensational.” Robinson told MK Dons Player after the game. “It’s a big win for us and it sets up a massive Tuesday night game.
“I thought tactically we were very secure in the first half, although we didn’t necessarily light the game up. We wanted to play a certain way because we knew coming here we had to be strong and resolute and we did that.
“In the second half I felt we had enough energy and quality in the group to try and attack and get more out of the game. Maybe because we were 1-0 down we were able to take the shackles off.
“We have scored a few late goals of late and I think that’s because we’ve got a bit of freshness to our play at the moment. George deserved it; he’s lived in the shadows of his brother for a while now so I’m pleased he’s now getting the plaudits.
“My celebration was a little bit silly and a little bit embarrassing but they’re moments in this game that I’ll never forget. I apologise to (Marc Cooper) but I think he’ll understand that it meant a lot to me and my team.
“I thought everybody, to a man, did well. Sanmi was excellent, I thought Smithy had arguably his best game in an MK Dons shirt and the man alongside him, Dele Alli, will probably take the headlines once again. I thought the captain led by example and the back four showed how brave they can be.”
There is no time for the Dons to celebrate, however, with a difficult trip to Notts County coming up on Tuesday night.
Robinson has called for his players to take the confidence and belief into that test at Meadow Lane. He added: “We’ve got to use this now and move on to Notts County. We’re going there with tremendous confidence but we’ve got to go there in the right frame of mind as well.
“It’ll be a different set of circumstances; whereas these are competing for the play-offs, we’re now going to a team who are fighting for their lives so arguably we’re going to have to work even harder.”
