AFC Wimbledon 0 Burton 1 – Dons firmly entrenched in League One drop zone as Bostwick strike settles contest

BY DANIEL MARSH

AFC Wimbledon slumped to a 1-0 home defeat at the hands of a resurgent Burton Albion outfit in SW19.

A 59th-minute strike from Michael Bostwick was enough to seal the Brewers’ fifth win on the spin as they continue to edge away from the Dons – who remain entrenched in the League One relegation zone.

Both sides failed to shine in a dismal first half, but Jonny Smith threatened to change that with a mazy run down the Dons’ left flank. The winger’s cutback was well-executed, but George Dobson was on hand with a vital intervention to bail the hosts out.

It took just shy of an hour for the game’s first shot on target – but it was worth the wait for Burton as Bostwick broke the deadlock.

The Dons failed to deal with a long throw into their penalty area, which allowed the Brewers defender to lash home a sweet half-volley beyond Sam Walker .

Mark Robinson responded by immediately introducing Ollie Palmer, Callum Reilly and Ayoub Assal in a triple switch.

It failed to spark a turnaround in the Dons’ fortunes though, as they failed to put Burton under any sustained spell of pressure.

Joe Pigott did at least manage to work the visiting goalkeeper – but his header was tame after stretching to reach Nesta Guinness-Walker’s floated delivery.

Jaakko Oksanen had an opportunity at the death, but he steered a tame effort straight at the keeper as time ran out on the Dons, leaving them empty-handed against their relegation rivals.