MK Dons boss Alexander wants to raise morale
After an excellent start to the season, things have gone a bit wrong in recent weeks, with the Dons failing to win any of their last four matches in Sky Bet League Two.
They also picked up just one point from their last six at Stadium MK, drawing against Notts County then losing 2-1 to Stockport County last time out – their first home loss of the campaign .
Last weekend, the Dons were disappointed to be held to a 1-1 draw against a Sutton United side who have lost seven games in a row, but Alexander is keen to look on the bright side.
He knows life in League Two can be tough but he wants to lift his spirits, starting with a strong performance and victory over Simon Weaver’s Harrogate Town at Stadium MK this Saturday (on at 3 p.m.).
“We know that winning games brings happy faces, smiling faces and that’s what we want,” the Dons boss said. “We want fans to look forward to coming to the game, going home and talking about the game in a positive way.
“I want my players to feel on top of the world, but that has to be balanced with the reality that no one is going to hand us anything on a silver platter. Everyone is in this game to win and we must ensure that our will to win is stronger than the will of the opposition.
“I believe that good form at home is important because that is where the majority of your fans go to watch the matches.
“The more we can encourage them and give them something to shout about, the better it is for everyone. It’s a better environment and it’s a happier place.
“We’ve got that and I don’t want a couple of results that didn’t go our way to destroy the good feeling we had just a few weeks ago when we were top of the league and everyone was in chaos. chaos.
“It’s only been two weeks, so let’s smile again, be positive again and give our supporters something to give back.
“Our responsibility, my responsibility, is to build a team that can help the fans do that, and when the players take the field, it is their responsibility to carry that atmosphere forward. .”
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Graham Alexander believes it is going to take time for his MK Dons players to really generate some home comfort at Stadium MK
Dons entertain struggling Harrogate Town on Saturday (ko 3pm) off the back of their first home defeat of the season a fortnight ago, going down 2-1 to Stockport County.
That came after a 1-1 Stadium MK draw with Notts County, with those results coming off two wins in their opening home matches, against Tranmere Rovers and Doncaster Rovers.
The Dons boss isn’t going to get dowbeat over a couple of disappointing home results, but he accepts there could be something of a hangover from last season when the team struggled on home soil as they were relegated from Sky Bet League One.
“We started the season really well here with two wins out of two, and then drew against Notts County, which I believe was a really good result,” said Alexander.
“But then I just thought the Stockport game was flat.
“I don’t think we had any significant spell of pressure or dominance, so we had to take our medicine and didn’t pretend that we should have won that game.
“I don’t believe the opposition did enough to win it either, I thought it should have been a draw, but they got the extra goal and that’s what counts.
“But there is a big job with us here (at Stadium MK).
“We looked at the home record of MK last season, and it was the second worst in England, so there is going to be a bit of pain along the way.
“But we did start well and we just need to make sure that any punch on the nose we get, we get straight back up off the canvas.
“That is how football is, so this game will be a good test of the mentality of our squad and our players, that we can put this point behind us and look at the future, and that is all I am worried about.
“We keep talking to the players about looking forward, and how can make the next action, the next game, the next occasion we represent ourselves into a good one, and it is in our heads.
“Getting beat shouldn’t impinge on the next game, unless you let it. Life is all about decisions, and deciding to be in a good mood, and deciding to be positive, is down to you as a person.
“That’s how I live my life, I want my team to live life like that, and if I do that, I want the team do that, I want the supporters to do that.
“We want to be a positive thinking club, with the dose of the reality that it is not always going to go our way.”
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