Three takeaways from AFC Wimbledon’s defeat to bottom-of-the-table Rochdale – Dons suffer another frustrating afternoon but young defender a bright spark

BY DAN EVANS

A 1-0 defeat to bottom-of-the-table Rochdale meant AFC Wimbledon missed the chance to record back-to-back wins in League Two on Saturday. 

Danny Lloyd’s goal midway through the second half earned the visitors their first win in 13 league games.

Here are Dan Evans’s three takeaways from Plough Lane:

WAYWARD SHOOTING DOES LITTLE TO HELP THE DONS FIND THE NET 

Wimbledon had 15 shots at goal against Rochdale, with the visitors registering just two throughout the 90 minutes on Saturday. 

This was the most the Dons have had in a game since the 3-2 defeat to Stevenage at the end of February, but they only hit the target on three occasions and rarely troubled Rochdale goalkeeper Richard O’Donnell. 

Youngsters Isaac Ogundere and Alfie Bendle both went close to equalising late on, yet wayward shooting throughout the game ultimately proved costly. 

Midfielder Armani Little was especially wasteful, firing four efforts wide of the target and seeing one shot blocked. 

January signing Little blazed over from a particularly good opening in the first half after he had done well to steal possession in the middle of the park. 

JANNEH STRUGGLES CONTINUE ON AND OFF THE PITCH 

It would be fair to say that Saikou Janneh has struggled to find his feet at Plough Lane since signing on loan from Cambridge United in January. 

The forward has failed to register either a goal or an assist in his 13 appearances for Wimbledon so far, and his impact was limited against Rochdale. 

With Ali Al-Hamadi on the bench after picking up a knock in the midweek win against Walsall on his return from international duty with Iraq, Janneh made a third start in a row up front. 

However, the Gambian attacker mustered just one shot at goal, completed four of his eight passes and had only 12 touches – the fewest of any player that started the game. 

His woes even continued after he was replaced by Al-Hamadi in the 58th minute. 

OGUNDERE SHOWS STRENGTH IN DEPTH AT RIGHT-BACK AS GUNTER FALLS DOWN THE PECKING ORDER 

When Hus Biler suffered a setback after returning from a hamstring injury ahead of last weekend’s trip to Barrow, the decision to allow Chris Gunter to join up with Wales as a coach appeared a strange one. 

With the Dons already low on players due to a spate of injuries, they were seemingly set to be left without a senior right-back over the international break. 

Although Isaac Ogundere featured in seven league matches in the first half of the season, he was sent on loan to National League South Dartford in January in the hope of playing more games. 

But with the injuries piling up and Johnnie Jackson without several first-team defenders, the Hillingdon-born full-back was recalled in early March after playing just five times at Dartford. 

Ogundere has not looked back since, starting three matches this week and proving that he could be the next academy graduate to consolidate a regular place in the first team. 

It would be a stretch to suggest that anyone in a blue shirt impressed against Rochdale, but Ogundere again showed that he is more than comfortable at League Two level. 

He made several important interventions to halt the visitors on the counterattack and almost had a moment to remember with a late shot into the arms of Richard O’Donnell. 

With Jackson confirming after the game that Gunter had been left out of the squad for tactical reasons and that Biler is set to be missing for a while longer, Ogundere could make the position his own in what remains of the season. 

MAIN PICTURE: LUCY DIXON