Steven Schumacher delighted as League One leaders Plymouth win again

Posted Monday, January 02, 2023 by PA

Plymouth boss Steven Schumacher was delighted as his side swept to a 3-1 home win over MK Dons to soar seven points clear at the League One summit.

On-loan Swansea playmaker Morgan Whittaker set up first-half goals for James Wilson and Niall Ennis before making it 3-1 in the second period, with Nathan Holland having briefly restored parity for the visitors in the 19th minute.

“It’s a brilliant result, a huge three points and topped off what has been a great week,” said Schumacher, whose side won 1-0 at Cheltenham on Boxing Day and toppled Wycombe by the same scoreline on Thursday.

He continued: “We have had tough days, away at Cheltenham and home here to Wycombe and then again today.

“They were three different styles of games but we managed to adapt and come through all of them with maximum points so I couldn’t be any prouder of the players.

“We spoke before the game how important it was to try and play with some energy and try and get off to a good start.

“We wanted to start fast and we did that. I thought the two lads who came back in – Joe Edwards and Bali Mumba – set the tempo.

“The defenders moved the ball really well and then the forward players made some good chances for themselves.

“It was a good start. I was disappointed we conceded. It was a good goal from them.

“We kept our composure, didn’t lose our rag, and managed to get a second one just before half-time, which was good.

“Then Morgan Whittaker produces another brilliant bit of quality and it’s game over.

“That’s 36 points out of a possible 39 here and our fans were excellent, right behind us from the first whistle and we’ve sent them home happy again.

“(We are) seven points clear of Ipswich and Sheffield Wednesday, who have got to play (on Monday). We are pleased with that but there’s still a long way to go. That was a big win for us and the ball is in their court now. They have both got to try and win to close the gap.”

New MK Dons head coach Mark Jackson said: “We knew it was going to be a tough place to come. They are at the top of the league and flying high and it was a challenge which we were ready and prepared for.

“We felt confident coming into the game, but we knew it was going to be a really tough challenge.

“The one area where we have been lacking is creating chances but I thought we did that better today.

“We caused Plymouth some problems at times in the final third and we managed to work through some of the ideas we have talked about and worked on the training ground.

“The fact I have seen some of my ideas coming out in the games already is really pleasing. We are fully focused on Lincoln, which is the next game.

“We have had six days together and three games in that time and limited time on the training pitch. We have to put things in perspective. We can now have some
time on the training ground to work to implement my ideas a little bit more.

“We have got a lot of work to do, we know that. I have got full belief in the players. The desire to implement what I want to do was evident for me as a coach and I am really buoyed by that.

“We created chances, we wanted to get our wide players and forward players into forward positions and we did that.”