After leading MK Dons to victory as interim boss, Dean Lewington says Saturday’s triumph over Portsmouth ranks high amongst his career highlights.
Under the interim care of their club captain, Lewington, the Dons secured a valuable three points at Fratton Park, with goals in each half from Bradley Johnson and Jack Tucker sealing a 2-0 victory.
“I'm thrilled with the three points,” Lewington said in his post-match press conference. “It's a nice feeling because we've not won for a long time. It was good to hear some music in the dressing room, a bit of positivity about the place.
“The boys were fantastic, putting in that shift today. I think it's in my top five moments at the club because I'm so proud of the players. Portsmouth is a hard place to come, and with where we are in the league, I'm proud of everyone for getting that win.
“It's only one win but we'll take whatever wins we can get at the moment. It’s maybe a bit of a marker too - not many people expected us to get a result here, so to get a victory shows we're still alive and fighting.”
He added: “Hopefully it’s the start of something, and whoever comes in can build on it and get us up that table.”
Reflecting on the performance, Lewington commented: “We started okay. They had a couple of shots but they were comfortable for Jamie (Cumming) and after that we settled and played well.
“We haven't had a lot of time to work on things this week, but we did defensive shape. We were solid, compact and made life hard for Portsmouth and when our chances came, we took them.
“The first goal was a great cross from Conor (Grant) and really came at the right time for us. When you're down at the bottom and 1-0 up, your natural tendency is to sit back but we went and got a second.
“I'm really pleased for Tucks to score. He played excellently, got his head on a lot of things and was a really good presence. The goal should be a massive shot in his arm he needed to go on and be the player we know he can be.”
Lewington also paid tribute to David Martin, who has assisted him this week and was alongside him on the dugout at Fratton Park.
“Dave has been incredible” Lewington said of his teammate. “He stepped up to be by my side - in meetings, working with the keepers, barking away as my number two, which he was loving!
“He has been incredible but that goes for everyone - everyone has gone above and beyond what is expected and this win is a credit to them.”
***
Attention for MK Dons turns to Tuesday's Carabao Cup Fourth Round tie with Leicester City at Stadium MK.
Tickets, which will are available to buy online and from the Box Office, are priced from £16 adults, £12 over-65s/under-25s, £4 under-18s and £2 under-12s while under-7s can watch in the Family Area for just £1. Upgrades are available to East Centre and Club Red. Ticket prices will increase by £2 on the day of the game.
To purchase tickets CLICK HERE, visit the Box Office at Stadium MK or call 01908 622933. Tickets will be available to buy right up until kick-off.
