MK unable to make it into League Two promotion zone for the New Year

Tonight , 4th placed MKFC face their second big xmas/ new year test against 6th placed Notts County in tonight’s Monday big legue two night fixture. After beating top of the League Swindon Town on boxing day one nil at home, Mk had everything to play for and bring in 2026 with a boom by beating Notts County and rising into the promotion zone of league two for the start of the New Year but it ws not to be.

Mk home end at start of match

Notts County away end- below

Mk greet Notts County at start

Both ends were very vocal at the start of the match. Who could out sing each side was prooving just as competitive as as who could out play each other on the pitch. The first five mins were fierce as each side fought for domination. MK Fc got the first opportunity in the 4th min with some attacking play in the Notts county penalty box but County were ablw to deal with it quite convincingly. In the 7th min, county got a run at MK and a county striker was bought down just outside the box. The following county kick went straight way over the box. A county throw in followed and more pressure. An Mk defender gave away th ball in a clearance and MK were begining to look less solid at the back than County. By the end of the first quarter, County had had more of the play but neither side had created a decent shot at goal. There was a lot of fighting going on in the midfield with both sides managing to push the ball up front. In the 15th, Mk managed to get a shot at goal but it went very wide. County were more vocal at the start of the second quarter and one couldn’t help feeling that County looked the most likely side to go up on the pitch, if they started to get some shots at goal. In the 18th, MK countered and managed to get a corner on the right hand side. The kick was lethal and a shot went straight at the county keeper and which was luckily deflected away from his chest. This was the first serious attempt at goal of the match and it had gone to MK. The Mk drummer started up in the second quarter which started to even up things amongst the supporters. Mk strikers kept running at County defenders to try and steal the ball and create opportunities. In the 24th min county got another free kick which when taken was better struck but easily dealt with by the MK defence. By the third quarter of the first half, the match had moved towards a stalemate. Both sides were getting into each other’s end but no threatenng opportunities were being created. Something was required to break the impasse of neutrality and over cautious safe play. Whoever dared to take more risks would be most likely to take the lead. County were begining to get some good runs led by their right winger and in the 30th minute, they earnt two corners but still nothing materialised from them. In the 40th min, County got a third corner, which a county striker got a head to pushing the ball high over the MK crossbar. The match from a supporter point of view was getting frustrating to watch until the 43rd minute when finally county got an unchecked run at goal which led to their first really decisive shot

putting them one nil up at the most percect time, just before half time. The county lead forced MK into action and they started to play less cautiously and run at goal without worrying about the consequences. However, the timing of such play was far too late and it was like trying to close the door after the horse had bolted.

At the start of the second half, county with a one nil lead were now in 3rd in League Two and MK had dropped to 6th. Urgent Mk action was now required if MK were serious about getting promotion this season. They had to come out fighting and with a will to turn things quickly around. Three Mk substitues were put on at the start in an attempt to show they meant business. In the 47th min, the ball when up front to Callum Paterson who got a thumping long shot at goal which went wide. Gethin Jones, Lemonheigh Evans and Hedburn- Murphy had been substituted onto the pitch. It was good to see that Marvin Ekpiteta was kept on for the second half, as he continued to be at the centre of any promising play from MK. County’s early second half tactics were to keep possession of the ball as man to man passing increasesd in an attempt to hinder MK from getting back into the match. County were now running down well on the left wing during any counter attack, further frustrating MK. Any attacking opportunity MK got in the first quarter of the second half, county continued to look solid in dealing with it, adding to MK’s problem of being able to even things up. Gethin Jones was making himself useful, getting a lot of possession and trying to create opportunities. He was playing in a higher gear to the rest of the team who needed to raise their game with him. The inevitable result was that by the second quarter County were getting more of the play and looked more like increasing their lead rather than the match going equal. In the 66th, a county player got booked following an MK attack and Dan Crowley was bought on as a fourth substitute. Mk were throwing every tactic they could at County to get back into the match and at times their dicipline started to look less firm as a consequence. However, all was not lost, captain Alex Gilby started to inspire penetrating runs similar to those of Gethin Jones. One of them finally worked and Callum Paterson was able to get a shot at goal and make it 1-1. The MK home end becam vocalised with chants of O Milton Keynes, O, O, O…,In the 75th Mk got a free kick not too far from the box but the strike went miles over the cross bar. Everything was all game as the match hit the final quarter. The equaliser led to more substituting from

County as both sides set for an end game power struggle to get the winner. Mk started to pass and connect better and were getting more runs into the County end through the centre. One of them connected up with Ekpiteta who ran dangerously wild and free just outside the county box but he fell to the ground unsble to connect up with anybody. In the 82nd, Mk got another long free kick on the left hand side but the shot failed to create anything. In the 84th, County managed to get some play of their own and got a right hand corner headed away by an MK defender for a second which also lacked sucess. In the 88th, County got a free kick close to the Mk goal which when taken also missed. 7 mins of extra time was awarded but it was not sufficient enough to allow a winner goal to be delivered and the match ended 1-1 and with MK still in 4th place in League Two and three points a drift from a place in the promotion zone. One positive from the match was the attendance of 9223, slightly higher than normsl for a midweek evening fixture.

County get a late end of match free kick just outside the MK box but no winning goal.