26 September 2020

Glyn Hodges hails Steve Seddon after winning goal on Wimbledon return

26 September 2020

AFC Wimbledon boss Glyn Hodges hailed the performance of Steve Seddon after he scored on his return to the club to secure a 1-0 win at Fleetwood.

Wimbledon had resisted the pressure exerted by hosts in the first half before taking a surprise lead through full-back Seddon five minutes before half-time.

The new recruit from Birmingham, back for a second loan spell with the Dons, scored after combining with Joe Piggott.

And after their first league win of the campaign, his manager was delighted with the immediate impact of the 22-year-old.

“Seddon has grabbed the headlines again, we know what he has to offer and he’s scored a great goal,” said Hodges. “The build-up and the way we executed it was worthy of winning any game.

“He’s done so well, as has everybody else, and it’s sending us home in a buoyant mood.

“We sometimes have to grind wins out, improve and look at what we need to do to get three points, which are like gold dust. We’ve found a way to do that today and we’ll try our hardest to do it next week as well.

“It’s a shame to come up to these places and not be able to experience it with the fans, it’s an away win but with the fans not allowed to be here it feels a little bit hollow.

“But the boys are buzzing; the journey back will be one we’ll enjoy. These things need to be shared with the fans but that’s the only disappointing thing from today.”

Despite dominating the game, the defeat was Fleetwood’s third in a row and Cod Army boss Joey Barton admitted to feeling somewhat hard done by, despite an impressive showing by his players.

“I’m frustrated, similar to last week’s game at Peterborough but slightly different circumstances,” he said. “I thought we dominated possession without any real purpose or end product, we didn’t test their goalie enough and you know you’re facing a team that’s difficult to beat and difficult to break down.

“They came with a game plan to frustrate us and waste time at every opportunity, which is a way of winning games, but they go back with the three points.

“We’re frustrated that we couldn’t find that equaliser and maybe push on from there but I can’t fault the lads’ endeavour, they kept going to the end.

“I am about results and I am about winning, as a human being and as a coach. I have a lot of young players in the team, who wouldn’t normally be playing had we got the financial muscle, I’ve got to be patient but we’re coming towards the end of the transfer window so I think we’ll have some more bodies in soon.”

The best videos delivered daily

Watch the stories that matter, right from your inbox