Fleetwood Town played out a 1-1 draw against MK Dons in difficult conditions at Highbury Stadium on Tuesday night in Sky Bet League One.
Town went one goal down as Harry Darling found the back of the net via a header but Paddy Lane’s strike into the bottom corner levelled things up in a competitive contest which finished a point apiece for the sides.
It was seven minutes into the game where Fleetwood threatened as Danny Andrew, Dan Butterworth, and Ellis Harrison combined down the left with some cute one-touch football where Andrew’s final strike went well over the bar.
With 11 minutes gone, Darling opened the scoring up for the visitors with a free header into the top corner from a Dons’ free-kick.
On the 20-minute mark, Fleetwood started to put the pressure on The Dons’ defence with Dan Batty’s turns and cut-backs proving testing for Dean Lewington and Conor Coventry however, that attack fizzled out.
With half an hour gone Alex Cairns was called into immediate action as he had to be quick off his line to match a Mo Eisa chip where Town’s number one came out on top as his out-stretched leg denied any further effort from MK Dons.
Not much action in the final 15 minutes as Fleetwood went into the break one goal down.
It was an ideal response by Fleetwood where five minutes into the second half, Harrison Biggins’ tackle on Coventry dispossessed the Dons and ignited a counter for Town.
Biggins played it forward to Harrison who drove deep into the visitors half and laid it off to Lane who struck the ball with his right into the bottom corner to level things up.
After the goal Town started to move up the gears with Harrison setting the tempo pressing the visitors giving their back-line no time on the ball.
Five minutes after the hour mark, Troy Parrott found himself on the end of a long ball however Cairns’ save matched his effort and Toto Nsiala was there to clear the added danger.
With 75 minutes on the clock and Anthony Pilkington’s fresh legs proved difficult for the visitors’ defence to cope with as his effort on goal was deflected where James Cumming was at full stretch to tip it over the bar- from the following corner, Nsiala headed just wide.
With just minutes to go Town were the team on top with Pilkington’s hold-up play taking out four Dons’ defenders, he lays off Lane whose cross into the box found Harrison, but his header was easy for Cumming.
Despite the five additional minutes, Fleetwood pushed and pushed but they couldn’t get the vital extra goal as both sides share the spoils.
Fleetwood XI: Cairns (GK), Andrew (C), Clarke, Butterworth (72’ Pilkington), Harrison, Morris (45’ Macadam), Batty, Johnson, Biggins, Lane, Nsiala
Unused subs: O’Hara (GK), Baggley, Boyle, Johnston, Hayes
Dons XI: Cumming (GK), Lewington (C), O’Hora, Darling, Smith, Twine, Eisa (71’ Wickham), Coventry, Parrott, Harvie, Kesler-Hayden (71’ Watson)
Unused subs: Ravizzoli (GK), Corbeanu, McEachran, Kemp, Boateng