Gillingham 1 Milton Keynes Dons 1

Match 45/07/662 - Tuesday, 8th January 2008 - JPT Area SF

Gillingham (0) 1 Stone 84
Milton Keynes Dons (0) 1 Johnson 85
MK Dons win 5-4 on penalties
Att. 3,717

Entrance: £15
Programme: £1
Mileage: 45/3,836

Match Report

A semi-final tag was all that was needed to drag me along to Priestfield and stump up the £15 entrance for this Paint Pot match. In all its guises over the last 25 years this has never been a successful competition for Gillingham, a couple of area semi-finals being the most achieved. It has been a competition that I’ve mostly given a miss and when I’ve turned up there have been some truly awful performances and shocking results. Torquay turning us over to the tune of three goals at Priestfield and the disappointment of the golden goal at the New Den in an area semi final.

On a windy night with squally heavy showers and a entire midfield suspended hopes were not that high that a favourable result would be the outcome against a MK Dons side that had climbed to the top, and opened up a significant gap, of League Two.

MK Dons are not a side to be loved. Their entrance into the Football League in 2003 was met with opposition from football supporters nationwide. Chairman Pete Winkleman had purchased the old Wimbledon club and moved it to Milton Keynes with the unlikely authorisation of the FA. The club was dubbed Franchise FC and everybody hoped they would get their come-uppance in the fullness of time. This has not happened as the club has gone from strength to strength. They have a shiny new stadium, a solid fan base far in excess of the numbers at Selhurst Park and now a team that is on the up under the guidance of Paul Ince, a manager perhaps destined for even higher reaches.

The match itself was really poor and hardly befitting of its pseudo semi-final tag. After 80 lifeless minutes it exploded with two goals in a minute. Gillingham surprisingly taking the lead on 84 with a touch in by Craig Stone, only for the home side to concede 30 seconds later. A penalty shoot out provided the climax for the game and such is mine and Gillingham’s luck with these finishes that it just had to end in disappointment. I remember Gills winning one years ago at Brighton, but I haven’t witnessed another success and as for England, well we all know that they don’t win shoot-outs.

Ultimately it was young substitute Luis Cumbers that ended up the villain as his penalty hit a post after being delayed in taking it whilst the referee decided that after eight previously successful attempts the crowd behind the goal were becoming a invasion threat.

My banner headline to this blog hopes that the season will end back at Wembley with Gillingham. A truly unlikely run to the end of the season is now needed to push into a play off place, not impossible but highly implausible.

By a strange coincidence, the FA Trophy brings AFC Wimbledon to Tonbridge on Saturday. The breakaway club formed following the relocation of the old Dons are also doing very nicely thank you and one day the paths of these two will have to cross. Justice will be that AFC take the honours.