Burton Albion 0-0 Milton Keynes Dons

Burton Albion 0-0 Milton Keynes Dons

Sky Bet League Two

Sunday 7th May 2023

Having absolutely loved watching Ben Radcliffe for the past two weekends - and everything he epitomises with his character, buzzing smile and just the person he is, it made sense to complete the hat-trick and cap off a really enjoyable week of football where I’ve seen some top lads, by watching one of the best yet again and turning up at this game!

It didn’t quite go to plan because he was actually an unused substitute but, since the 3-3 draw at Scarborough Athletic eight days ago, it’s not been a bad week for Radders as he made his EFL debut off the bench in a 1-0 win over Cambridge United on Wednesday night, wearing some terrible red boots that really don’t go with the black and yellow Burton kit (or the grip socks) but impressing so many with his mature and confident performance in the right-back slot.

It was probably the icing on the cake of what's been a fantastic first season for him as a professional where he’s earned so much love and respect, created so many memories, played over 4,000 minutes of football, won the ‘Young Player Of The Year’ award at Banbury United where he’s been on loan, scored a few goals - including the one which kept the Puritans up, made his parents enormously proud, and also come across another top, top, top lad who is right up near the top of the list of players I love to bits.

That lad is Jasper Moon, and just like Radders he’s played with a big smile on his face ever since he arrived at the Pirelli Stadium, buzzing with confidence, earning himself a space in the ‘Team Of The Week’ a few times and it’s been fantastic to see it from afar considering he’s had a few tough spells on and off the pitch over the past few years.

And the good thing from my perspective was Jasper actually played in this game (complete with his face-mask) so it wasn’t a totally wasted trip - not that it would have been anyway to catch up with them both afterwards!

If there was a league table since Jasper joined, Burton would be in 8th position and two points better off than Derby County (the big team in this area) which isn’t bad going whatsoever to say they were in the thick of a relegation battle when he arrived. 

It’s no surprise that Brewers fans have realised his quality, want him to stay for next season, and it’s been a very successful loan overall which he's needed at this stage of his career. There’s a reason why I’ve stuck up, believed in him and supported him in the past so many times. I always trust my judgments and everything he’s achieved in the last few months has just been a case of everything I know he can do coming to the fore - including this clean-sheet today which was earned through a lot of defensive resilience.

There was another familiar face in Burton’s line-up as Jordan Amissah is someone I’ve watched several times for Sheffield United’s U23s over the past few seasons and, in my opinion, he’s probably the best ‘keeper the Blades have on their books at that level. I didn’t realise just how massive he was until seeing him close-up in the warm-up where he made Radders, who is a physical beast for 19, look absolutely tiny in comparison!

And whilst this is a piece all about Burton, it’s hard not to mention Oliver Šarkić - memorable for his turquoise boots and a class strike ironically against MK Dons back in the day, nowadays playing back in his home country of Montenegro for FK Dečić and another player I actually need to get out there and have a good catch up with at some point soon.

All these lads are phenomenal people as well as class players who’ve got my support to the hilt, whenever they want it, for the rest of their careers!

Onto the pitch and although I only got to see Radders in the warm-up (singing along this week to ‘Just Can’t Get Enough’), there was actually something riding on the outcome of this game as MK Dons needed three points to secure their own status in League One for 2023/24.

Burton did just that a couple of weeks ago when they won away at Lincoln; again not a bad feat considering where they were to where they are now, and along with the players who’ve been magnificent over the past few months, credit has to go to Dino Maamria who has turned things around, revitalised the club - and, going a bit further back, he actually scored in the very first football game I went to 24 years ago!

Yep, I do remember everything! 

With MK needing a win and Burton already safe, it’s probably not surprising that the game was more or less a ‘barrage’ and ‘peppering’ with the Brewers backline forced to stand up to 31 shots in total which either got blocked, went high, went wide and went everywhere BUT the back of the net where, of course, the visitors desperately needed the ball to go.

Despite being backed by over 1,600 traveling fans who were in good voice before kick-off and in the early stages, there was a near-palpable realisation that relegation might happen midway through the first half when Cambridge scored twice in relatively quick succession in their game at home to Forest Green Rovers - thus dropping MK Dons into the bottom four. 

And, suddenly, the Pirelli Stadium got a lot more eerie and quiet.

That could have changed just before half-time when Mo Eisa just couldn't quite open his account (Sorry Jeff!) as he drew a top class fingertip save from Craig MacGillivray with a curling shot that was bending into the top corner, and with Jasper Moon involved in a fully-committed battle throughout the second half with Jonathan Leko, the minutes slowly passed and the anxieties grew amongst the away fans.

Naturally, it culminated in ‘kitchen sink time’ as John Brayford made four great defensive contributions in the space of just 120 seconds - throwing himself infront of the ball to make blocks, be brave and just stop the Dons, whilst Zac Ashworth got back and epitomised that same sort of determination and desire in the latter stages when the tensions were high and the fingernails had long since been chewed off.

Still 0-0 after a free-kick on the edge of the box was planted over, it all came down to one big corner-kick in the fifth minute of injury-time and with MK ‘keeper Jamie Cumming up in the Burton box, there was an almighty goalmouth scramble.

Dons fans hoped for the best; Burton fans prayed the ball wouldn’t go in and after THREE sensational goal-line clearances, it broke loose to the edge of the box where... an eventual shot went over the crossbar!

And that was it because soon enough, the referee blew his whistle. 

A 0-0 draw to condemn the Dons to relegation back to League Two after four seasons in the third tier - and there’ll be plenty of reflection and pondering on what went wrong over the next few weeks.

Something which I’ll never figure out from this game is why Will Grigg - a striker with international pedigree, famous for that song, but known for scoring goals throughout his career and with a great CV having played in the Prem, was doing his stretches near the corner flag until the last quarter-hour when he was FINALLY brought on. Yes, other attackers were on the pitch, but the impetus was on MK to win the game. It was MUST win because they knew the score with Cambridge from very early on… so just get him on the pitch! He can’t score when he’s warming up! It was bizarre!

On the subject of goals, I’ll give a well-deserved mention to another top lad in Dylan Scott who was amongst the academy lads paraded round the pitch at half-time. He even had a smile on his face (which is a rarity according to the youth team lads who banter him for it) but he’s the top scorer in the entire North-East Youth Alliance this season with 31 goals to his name - more than anyone else. And what a feeling that must be!

Overall, a top day - quality to catch-up with some brilliant lads who I love to bits, epitomise everything I’m all about, and, moreover, for all the crap stuff that quite often goes on in football, a really happy way to end the season!

And to end on a quirky one for young Mr Radcliffe (no doubt with that smile on his face as he opens up a Google tab to check the answer if he doesn’t already know), have a look who scored both goals for the opposition in the first ever game you went to on that Tuesday night in December 2009 - and spot the irony! 

Football is a small world and I already can’t wait to see what song Radders murders in the warm-up when I next see him!