League One - Play-offs - 1st Leg
WycombeWycombe Wanderers2MK DonsMilton Keynes Dons0

Wycombe Wanderers 2-0 Milton Keynes Dons: Tafazolli and Vokes give Chairboys play-offs advantage

Ryan Tafazolli scores for Wycombe
Ryan Tafazolli's goal was his first since scoring twice against Crewe in October last year

Ryan Tafazolli and Sam Vokes were on target as Wycombe gave themselves a two-goal cushion to take to MK Dons in their League One play-off semi-final.

Tafazolli glanced home from close range and Vokes was only denied a second before the break by an offside flag.

MK Dons had midfielder Josh McEachran sent off for two yellow cards in the space of seven minutes.

And after Jason McCarthy hit their crossbar from 20 yards, Vokes headed in Garath McCleary's cross to make it two.

Both managers had the luxury of naming the same starting XI picked for their final games of the regular season - with Dons boss Liam Manning hoping to continue a trend that has seen the side finishing third win promotion via the play-offs in the past three seasons.

They looked the brighter side at the start and it took a superbly-timed block by Anthony Stewart to deny Scott Twine after David Kasumu cut the ball back to his side's leading scorer before Troy Parrott curled a good opportunity past keeper David Stockdale, but also beyond the far post.

Wycombe, who ended the season with a 12-game unbeaten run including eight victories, had to wait half an hour for their first meaningful effort as Vokes' header from an excellent McCleary cross forced Jamie Cumming into a diving save - a warning of what was to come in the second half.

It served to galvanise Gareth Ainsworth's Chairboys and they went in front when Tafazolli rose to meet Joe Jacobson's corner just three yards from goal despite being held by his marker - and it could have been two before the break only for Vokes to be ruled offside as he netted the rebound after Cumming pushed away Daryl Horgan's outside-of-the-foot shot.

MK Dons beat Wycombe home and away in the league and also in the Papa Johns Trophy but found it hard to contain the strong-running Chairboys in front of a crowd of 8,987 as Jordan Obita shot straight at Cumming following the re-start, having been played in by Dominic Gape.

With two Wycombe players already in the book, tempers frayed after a foul on Kaine Kesler Hayden by Josh Scowen and Dons midfielder McEachran was shown a yellow card for his part in the pushing and shoving.

The former Brentford and Chelsea player's evening got even worse seven minutes later when a late challenge on Scowen saw him sent off.

Josh McEachran
Josh McEachran's late challenge on Josh Scowen capped a disappointing evening for MK Dons

The Dons took 25 points during the season from losing positions but there was no way back on this occasion and Wycombe got the extra goal advantage their performance deserved as Vokes outjumped the defence to head his 17th of the season.

It was the Wales international's final act, with Adebayo Akinfenwa sent on as a substitute just five days before his 40th birthday, and if they can defend their lead at Milton Keynes on Sunday, he could play the final game of his career against Sunderland or Sheffield Wednesday at Wembley on 21 May.

Wycombe boss Gareth Ainsworth told BBC Three Counties Radio:

"They've got this way of playing that's very difficult to get to grips with because their movement's so good, they're such young boys with so much energy and great technique and willingness.

"We're an older squad, there's a lot of experience in there and I think we pulled on all that experience to learn, to adapt, to change slightly what we were doing.

"Once we started dominating the game, it was then about staying on top - and obviously the red card helps.

"But I would be a very naive guy to think that anything is done yet. This is half-time."

Gareth Ainsworth
Gareth Ainsworth's Wycombe side won the League One play-offs when they last competed in them two years ago

MK Dons head coach Liam Manning told BBC Three Counties Radio:

"I was really pleased with the first 30 minutes, I thought we imposed our style, caused them problems, and created a couple of decent chances.

"Although you're on top, Wycombe always carry that physical threat and you saw that with the first goal they scored.

"The goal knocked us a bit and we ended up trying to play their game too much, which we're not going to win at.

"It's really important we don't sit around and feel sorry for ourselves, we've got a great opportunity going into the home leg on Sunday to reverse the score."

Line-ups

Wycombe

Formation 4-2-3-1

  • 13Stockdale
  • 26McCarthy
  • 5Stewart
  • 6Tafazolli
  • 3JacobsonBooked at 60mins
  • 4GapeBooked at 31minsSubstituted forWheelerat 80'minutes
  • 28Scowen
  • 12McCleary
  • 17HorganBooked at 64minsSubstituted forWingat 77'minutes
  • 23Obita
  • 9VokesSubstituted forAkinfenwaat 84'minutes

Substitutes

  • 2Grimmer
  • 7Wheeler
  • 11Wing
  • 16Kaikai
  • 20Akinfenwa
  • 30Dickinson
  • 38Forino

MK Dons

Formation 3-4-1-2

  • 1Cumming
  • 5O'Hora
  • 6Darling
  • 3Lewington
  • 29Hayden
  • 14Coventry
  • 16McEachranBooked at 69mins
  • 21Harvie
  • 8Kasumu
  • 9TwineSubstituted forBoatengat 83'minutes
  • 20ParrottSubstituted forWickhamat 90+2'minutes

Substitutes

  • 7Smith
  • 11Corbeanu
  • 15Baldwin
  • 17Kemp
  • 18Boateng
  • 19Wickham
  • 23Ravizzoli
Referee:
Darren Bond
Attendance:
8,987

Match Stats

Home TeamWycombeAway TeamMK Dons
Possession
Home48%
Away52%
Shots
Home11
Away7
Shots on Target
Home6
Away1
Corners
Home6
Away1
Fouls
Home14
Away4

Live Text

  1. Post update

    Match ends, Wycombe Wanderers 2, MK Dons 0.

  2. Full Time

    Second Half ends, Wycombe Wanderers 2, MK Dons 0.

  3. Post update

    Offside, MK Dons. Dean Lewington tries a through ball, but Harry Darling is caught offside.

  4. Post update

    Conor Coventry (MK Dons) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

  5. Post update

    Foul by David Wheeler (Wycombe Wanderers).

  6. Post update

    Attempt missed. Garath McCleary (Wycombe Wanderers) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the left. Assisted by Lewis Wing.

  7. Substitution

    Substitution, MK Dons. Connor Wickham replaces Troy Parrott.

  8. Post update

    Corner, Wycombe Wanderers. Conceded by Daniel Harvie.

  9. Post update

    Corner, Wycombe Wanderers. Conceded by Warren O'Hora.

  10. Post update

    Attempt blocked. Jordan Obita (Wycombe Wanderers) header from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Garath McCleary with a cross.

  11. Post update

    Hiram Boateng (MK Dons) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

  12. Post update

    Foul by Adebayo Akinfenwa (Wycombe Wanderers).

  13. Substitution

    Substitution, Wycombe Wanderers. Adebayo Akinfenwa replaces Sam Vokes.

  14. Substitution

    Substitution, MK Dons. Hiram Boateng replaces Scott Twine.

  15. Goal!

    Goal! Wycombe Wanderers 2, MK Dons 0. Sam Vokes (Wycombe Wanderers) header from the centre of the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Garath McCleary with a cross.

  16. Substitution

    Substitution, Wycombe Wanderers. David Wheeler replaces Dominic Gape.

  17. Post update

    Attempt missed. Ryan Tafazolli (Wycombe Wanderers) header from very close range is high and wide to the left. Assisted by Joe Jacobson with a cross following a corner.

  18. Post update

    Corner, Wycombe Wanderers. Conceded by Dean Lewington.

  19. Substitution

    Substitution, Wycombe Wanderers. Lewis Wing replaces Daryl Horgan.

  20. Post update

    Jason McCarthy (Wycombe Wanderers) hits the bar with a left footed shot from the centre of the box. Assisted by Dominic Gape.

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As It Stood

TeamPWDLFAGDPts
1Wigan462711882443892
2Rotherham462791070333790
3MK Dons462611978443489
4Sheff Wed462413978502885
5Sunderland4624121079532684
6Wycombe462314975512483
7Plymouth4623111268482080
8Oxford Utd4622101482592376
9Bolton4621101574571773
10Portsmouth4620131368511773
11Ipswich4618161267462170
12Accrington461710196180-1961
13Charlton46178215559-459
14Cambridge461513185674-1858
15Cheltenham461317166680-1456
16Burton461411215167-1653
17Lincoln City461410225563-852
18Shrewsbury461214204751-450
19Morecambe461012245788-3142
20Fleetwood46816226282-2040
21Gillingham46816223569-3440
22Doncaster46108283782-4538
23Wimbledon46619214975-2637
24Crewe4678313783-4629
View full League One table

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