Glyn Hodges refuses to make excuses for AFC Wimbledon’s loss to Lincoln - 7M sport

Glyn Hodges refuses to make excuses for AFC Wimbledon’s loss to Lincoln



Posted Sunday, January 03, 2021 by PA

Glyn Hodges refuses to make excuses for AFC Wimbledon’s loss to Lincoln

Glyn Hodges says AFC Wimbledon should not blame Covid-19 for their 2-1 loss to leaders Lincoln despite asking the English Football League to postpone the game.

Several Dons players are believed to have tested positive in advance of the clash at Plough Lane and the club made a formal application for a postponement.

But protests fell on deaf ears and Tom Hopper’s late winner condemned them to a third straight League One loss – although Hodges refused to blame the virus.

“I was still confident in the team that we picked, I was confident in the players,” Hodges said.

“When we realised how many have got Covid-19, and how many should have been isolating over and above that, that’s when we thought ‘should this game go ahead’ because they (Lincoln) had the same feeling, they had problems up there.

“That was my thinking, and why we tested to be proactive and see who had it and what we had to do to play the game. But the team was strong enough to win the game.

“We were scratching our heads how we didn’t score today, we went toe to toe with the top team in the division who are a good side and have some really good players.

“And it wasn’t as if they produced a great bit of magic to win, we’ve had a mistake that cost us the game, and I feel sorry for the players. But if we carry on in this vein, anything can happen, it’s just at the moment everything seems to be going against us.”

Lincoln, themselves without manager Michael Appleton due to a positive coronavirus test, made the perfect start when Tayo Edun slotted home early on.

The Dons pulled level just after the half-hour mark when Shane McLoughlin’s back-post cross was met by a thumping header by Ollie Palmer into the roof of the net.

The second half was a much more even affair with both sides creating plenty of chances but failing to convert them.

That was until Jorge Grant picked up a loose ball in the box and his cutback found Hopper, who guided the ball home with his left foot to earn his side a third straight league win.

Assistant manager David Kerslake, deputising for Appleton, was pleased with the response to his half-time team talk.

“We started well, we looked dangerous, we were manoeuvring the ball well, but then we stopped getting in behind them,” Kerslake said.

“I think that gave them a little bit of incentive, they started getting the ball early and getting onto second balls.

“But that was something we highlighted at half-time, we said we needed to be more aggressive, and I thought we did that, the second half I thought we were good for the result.

“From our point of view we followed all the right Covid protocols. We were ready for the game, the EFL said the game could go ahead, so there was no problem from our point of view.

“That’s for people much higher than me to make a judgement on.”

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