Harrogate Town v AFC Wimbledon: Sulphurites desperate to restore some pride

Having served up a performance at Salford City in midweek which manager Simon Weaver described as “embarrassing”, the Sulphurites chief has demanded a reaction from his players and left them in no doubt that they owe their supporters one.

"You don’t want to get let down, and I’ve felt a bit let down in the last 48 hours – and I’m sure the fans felt let down,” he said.

"I told the players that it was incredible the way we got clapped off the pitch [at Salford]. We didn’t merit that, any of us. We deserved a full barrage of criticism, I think that we all underperformed.

"So, it’s good that we have got a very good footballing team coming to play us and it is another big occasion, and I can see that the lads will react to what has been said and come out with fire in their bellies and want to make the fans and the town proud.

“We have to make the town proud every single game we play and we’re looking forward to rising to the challenge and showing people how much we do care.”

Weaver suggested in the immediate aftermath of Tuesday evening’s loss to Salford that he would have to make changes to his side for the visit of the Dons.

On that subject, he added: "I think that Wimbledon have got a lot of physicality about them, and the weather forecast isn’t great. So, we have to pick a team that can earn the right to play some good football and that will rise to the occasion, so we can benefit from playing on a good pitch and play to our strengths.

"We have got to conjure up a plan that will allow us to fight the fight for the club.

"But, the message will be no different to usual. We want to play with intensity and excite the fans and make sure that we go home having made our families proud.”

Town have failed to win any of their previous four encounters with the Dons, drawing two and losing two.

Last season's corresponding fixture saw Wimbledon triumph 1-0 at Wetherby Road last October courtesy of Omar Bugiel's neat sixth-minute finish from outside the box.

The most recent meeting between the sides took place in March, when Town midfielder Matty Daly's early opener was cancelled out after half-time by Ronan Curtis, who was then sent off just a few minutes later.

Both of Harrogate's clashes with the Dons during the 2022/23 campaign were dramatic affairs.

Their first-ever meeting was at Plough Lane in October 2022 and saw the hosts take the lead before the interval.

Two strikes inside the opening 20 minutes of the second period –from Daly and Alex Pattison – then turned the game on its head and appeared to have earned all three points.

However, Wimbledon rallied and scored in the 84th and 88th minutes to snatch a 3-2 success.

Then, in early April, with the Sulphurites fighting for survival at the wrong end of the division, another thrilling affair played out in North Yorkshire.

The Dons assumed a 2-0 lead after Ethan Chislett netted a goal in each half.

Luke Armstrong reduced the deficit on 89 minutes to set up a tense finale, and in the seventh minute of stoppage-time, Levi Sutton rammed home a last-gasp leveller following a scramble at a corner, sparking scenes of delirium around Wetherby Road.

History in this fixture may be against them, but Town do at least head into Saturday's contest off the back of a decent run of home form.

Weaver's men have won both of their last two games at the Exercise Stadium - 1-0 against Gainsborough Trinity in the FA Cup and 2-1 against Chesterfield in the league - and come out on top in three of the last five, with their only defeat during that sequence of matches coming against Morecambe on November 9.

Eighth-placed Wimbledon, who have been in and around the play-off places for the majority of 2024/25, are however in even better form away from home and have triumphed in each of their previous three games on the road, scoring seven times in the process and conceding just the once.

Last time out, they were held to a 2-2 home draw by Newport County.

Town, who dropped to 18th place in the League Two standings following their defeat Salford, have no fresh injury concerns ahead of Saturday’s fixture.

They are however still without defender Liam Gibson (hamstring) and midfielders George Thomson (achilles), Stephen Dooley (head) and Ellis Taylor (quad).