Mk New City move from third to second in League Two.

MKFC are capitalising on having to play close to the bottom of the league sides of late. On Saturday they convincingly beat Shrewsbury 5-1 at home and today they faced struggling Bristol Rovers at MK Stadium in a mid week clash which if they won would move them higher in League two, assuming all other results went their way.

Bristol Rovers away end

Mk midweek home end

Two mins from kick off, Mk got the ball into the Rovers penalty box and all looked promising had not a MK striker been unable to connect with it. Mk got a corner on the opposite side , two mins later but nothing came of this either. If MK were expecting, a continuation of a goal rush from Saturday, the first quarter did not look like they were going to get it from MK’s opening play. Off the pitch, Rovers fans were more vocal with a drumer starting up in reply in the Mk east stand. MK kept the pressure on and in the 10th min, a Rovers player broke free in a lightening counter attack which went straight into the MK keeper’s hands when struck. Rovers were fighting to avoid getting entangled in the relegation zone while Mk were hoping to move further on top in the promotion zone. By the start of the second quarter of the first half, the game was looking more evenly matched rather than Mk having achieved an expected supremacy. Mk started to get a bit more possession and started trying to chip away at the 0-0 scoreline. In the 19th min, they were awarded free kick 30 metres outdide the box. The kick curved in and connected with a Mk’s striker’s head but went over the cross bar. In the 22nd min, Rovers took a long throw

in but the their strikers in the box fumbled around with the ball and no serious attempt at goal was manufactured. In the 25th a rovers defender went down in the box and a yellow card was shown to an Mk striker as a light tustle started up between the players of both sides. In the 28th another foul followed, MK stuck the kick well and the connecting shot bounced between the rovers goal line and cross bar and very nearly went in. With Mk getting the best chance of the match so far, Rovers responded with some attacking play of their own as the match moved into the final quarter of the first half. In the final five mins of the first half the game had reached a stalemate which was nearly broken when an mk running striker went down in the rovers box, a call for a penalty was not given by the referee as boos resonated. The 0-0 scorine led to more frustration as fouling as each side was unable to break the deadlock. Mk gave away another serious defensive foul

and a second Mk yellow card was given. More fouling and scuffles followed with the referee looking like he was begining to lose control of the game. A red card looked like it would soon be coming. However in the 50th an Mk striker got a shot in which hit and deflected off the right hand post. Two minutes later, the unexpected or expected depending upon your perspective, finally happened, Callum Paterson was able to get a shot at goal which this time went in and put Mk one nil up just before half time. With all the fouling and distractions, the half time whistle was a long time in coming with 7 mins of extra time being awarded. With some time to cool down during break, one would have thought the second half would be a less confrontational but it didnt start that way. Two mins in, an MK striker was brought down running down the right wing and this time a free kick was given to MK. Nothing resulted from it except Rovers pushing the ball competitively up into the Mk end trying to knock on the door for an equaliser. In the 54th more referee blowing as the play started to get scrappy again. Mk tried to create a few more chances by the end of the first quarter of the second half but nothing looked like being seriously dangerous. Mk started to play more possession football in an attempt to hold onto their lead and futher frustrate Rovers. In the 60th MK got a corner on the left hand side but the Rovers defence were able to deal with it. Rovers used more substitutions in attempt to change the balence and outcome of the match. On the stands Mk fans were becoming more vocal while the Rovers end had fallen silent. Mk kept on passing and Rovers kept on chasing as the match moved through the second quarter if the second half. In the 65th Rovers managed to steal the ball from MK’s passing possession tactics and were able to get another shot on goal but not the equaliser. Roverd kept trying to step up their play while Mk tried to consolidate and hold onto the lead. The match looked like it had reached another impasse until the final quarter when Rovers appeared to be getting a bit more of the game, passing and maintaining possession more. The play was shifting more into the MK end as Rovers stepped up their play in search of a late second half equaliser. In the 72nd, a Rovers right side corner dropped right into the MK goal mouth and looked close to going in should a Rovers player have managed to connect with it. Rovers kept attacking and Mk kept on defending right up until the

full time whistle finally went.

With a 1-0 home victory, Mk move up

from third to second in league two with quite a gap of 8 points to Bromley in first place.