View from Kingsmeadow, Volume 30: Alty Highs, Wrexham Lows and All That

Terry Brown's AFC Wimbledon had a tough week ahead of them, starting with a home tie on Tuesday against Wrexham.

"The large number of fans who travelled to Tamworth and gave us magnificent support will have been delighted with the outcome, although we made hard work of it at times," Brown said of their last contest. "At 2-0 I would expect the team to close down the game in a more professional manner, but football never turns out how you expect. Credit to Tamworth who never gave up and threw everything at us to bring the scores level in the second half.

"Fortunately, we were able to bring on substitutes, and that certainly made a difference to the outcome. I thought Rashid Yussuff and James Mulley both had very good games, and it was good to see them both score, while Drewe Broughton registered his first goal for the club after coming on with the score at 2-2.

"The result sets us up well for our game against Wrexham who obviously had an off day on Saturday. I am not going to read much into that, other than that they will probably come to us doubly determined to keep a clean sheet and get back on the winning trail. I know from reports of their game at Crawley, they gave them a very good game for an hour, and I think that is more of an indication of their quality than a one-off result on Saturday."

Health-wise, the Dons had nearly all the weapons at Brown's disposal.

"On the injury front, Luke Moore isn't available following his injury in training last week, but we expect that Ismail Yakubu will rejoin the squad now that his treatment is complete. I am hoping to name an unchanged team for the game.

"This is the first of two more weeks of back-to-back games, and it is important that we gain more points to put pressure on Crawley and Luton. We are asking the fans for the same fantastic support they gave us for our last home game against York. You can ask any of the players and they will tell you that it really makes a difference."

Unfortunately, Brown was going to be disappointed in the team's performance that day. A goal from Wrexham's Mathias Pogba in the 76th minute gave the visitors a 1-0 victory.

Combined with Crawley Town's victory over league laggards Southport, things continued to look very tenuous as they continued their home stand with a Saturday contest against Altrincham.

"Training today consisted of a light session on the Astroturf followed by a DVD session incorporating points from the last two fixtures," Brown said on Thursday. "The emphasis was on ensuring we are able to play our passing game even when the opposition pressure us high up the pitch."

Brown noted that the style of football he wants from his players was lacking in their defeat to Wrexham.

"As with any footballing team," Brown said. "you have to work that much harder at finding the space necessary to keep the ball on the ground. As a coach it is relatively easy to look at any opposition and work out ways of stopping them playing. It is, however, much more difficult to take the game to our opponents in a manner that is pleasing to the eye, which we want to be.

"Whatever style of football a manager chooses to play, it must be winning football. Like any of the fans who watched on Tuesday you suffer the initial disappointment of a home defeat, but this has to be tempered with the fact that our style of play and consistency this year has put us in the position we are in today."

Optimism ran high at Kingsmeadow.

"The players are certainly not despondent and are looking forward to bouncing back against Altrincham on Saturday. There is good news on the injury front as both Rashid Yussuf and James Mulley are now fully fit. Ismail Yakubu will definitely be starting one of the next two or three games, and Sammy Moore should hopefully be available for Tuesday's game against Hayes.

"The other good news is that Lee Minshull has made significant progress this week. He had been running in straight lines very well, but last week, his first attempt at running round the curve of the "D" of the penalty area proved painful. After a bit more rest and treatment, he is now running at angles with no difficulty. We aren't going to rush him, but it is good to see him making a visible improvement again, and that put him in good spirits.

"Now that we have nearly a fully fit squad we are able to give Mark Nwokeji some game time at Eastleigh, where we thought he might give them a helping hand up the table. Mark has initially gone to Eastleigh for a month.

"Turning to the game itself, Dean Saunders commented on how patient our fans were on Tuesday, and we might need a little bit of that patience against an Altrincham side who are desperate for points on Saturday and will no doubt come to stop us playing our usual game. The players are all very confident and looking forward to the game."

Patience paid off for Danny Kedwell, who scored a hat trick with goals in the 37th, 45th and 60th minutes in Wimbledon's 4-1 pasting of Altrincham. Drewe Broughton added an insurance goal in the 81st minute over an Alty side that was down to 10 men after 75 minutes of play.

Still, given Crawley's result over Barrow, unless the Red Devils capitulate on their games in hand, Wimbledon are looking at the lottery of the promotion playoffs to end the year.

Up next for the Dons are a couple of important road matches. On Tuesday, AFC Wimbledon travels to Hayes & Yeading United for a Tuesday affair. Kickoff is scheduled for Mar. 1 at 2:45 p.m. ET. Wimbledon won the previous meeting 3-1 on Jan. 1 at Kingsmeadow to kick off the 2011 calendar year.

Next Saturday, Wimbledon continue their road escapade with a trip to Grimsby Town. Kickoff is scheduled for Mar. 5 at 10:00 a.m. ET.