2007–08 Milton Keynes Dons F.C. season

The 2007–08 season was the fourth season of competitive association football in the Football League played by Milton Keynes Dons Football Club, a professional football club based in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. Their fourth-place finish in 2006–07 and loss to Shrewsbury Town in the play-offs meant it was their second successive season in League Two. After the closure of the National Hockey Stadium this was the first season where the MK Dons played home fixtures at Stadium mk. The season ran from 1 July 2007 to 30 June 2008.

Milton Keynes Dons

2007–08 season
Chairman	Pete Winkelman
Manager	Paul Ince
Stadium	Stadium mk
League Two	1st (promoted to League One)
FA Cup	First round
League Cup	Second round
League Trophy	Winners
Top goalscorer	League: Mark Wright (13) All: Mark Wright (15)
Highest home attendance	17,250 (vs Morecambe) 3 May 2008, League Two
Lowest home attendance	5,087 (vs Peterborough United) 9 October 2007, League Trophy R2
Average home league attendance	9,456[1]
Biggest win	5–0 (vs Accrington Stanley) 8 December 2007, League Two
Biggest defeat	0–2 (vs Stockport County) 27 October 2007, League Two
Home colours Away colours Third colours
← 2006–07 2008–09 →

Paul Ince, starting his first season as Milton Keynes Dons manager, made nine permanent summer signings. After the eighth round of League Two fixtures the MK Dons reached first place and occupied this spot in thirty-seven of the remaining thirty-eight game weeks; they ended the season as champions of the twenty-four-team 2007–08 Football League Two. MK Dons also won their first national knockout competition, with a 2–0 victory over Grimsby Town at Wembley Stadium in the 2008 Football League Trophy Final. They lost in their opening round match in the 2007–08 FA Cup, and were eliminated in the second round of the Football League Cup.

Thirty-one players made at least one appearance in nationally organised first-team competition, and there were sixteen different goalscorers. Defender Dean Lewington missed only two of the fifty-five first-team matches over the season. Mark Wright finished as leading scorer with fifteen goals, of which thirteen came in league competition and two came in the Football League Trophy. Keith Andrews won the Football League Two Player of the Year Award.^[2]

Background and pre-season

See also: Milton Keynes Dons F.C. § History, and List of Milton Keynes Dons F.C. seasons

The 2007–08 season saw the Milton Keynes Dons move into Stadium mk.

The 2006–07 season was Martin Allen first season as manager of Milton Keynes Dons, after Danny Wilson was sacked at the end of the 2005–06 season for failing to save the club from relegation to League Two. Having been second come the start of 2007, the team finished in fourth-place in the 2006–07 Football League Two – one point below an automatic promotion place; this meant that the team participated in the League Two play-offs. MK Dons were beaten 2–1 on aggregate by Shrewsbury Town in the play-off semi-final. In May 2007 Allen moved on to manage Championship side Leicester City after both clubs had negotiated a compensation package.^{[citation needed]}

Ahead of 2007–08, MK Dons released Adolfo Baines, Lee Harper, Junior Lewis, Nick Rizzo, Jamie Smith and Oliver Thorne. Players sold were Paul Butler to Chester City, Dominic Blizzard to Stockport County, Gary Smith to Brentford, Izale McLeod to Charlton Athletic and Clive Platt to Colchester United. Milton Keynes Dons made nine summer signings, those being goalkeepers Nathan Abbey from Brentford and Willy Guéret from Swansea City; defender Jude Stirling from Peterborough United; midfielders Colin Cameron from Coventry City, Luke Howell from Gillingham, Alan Navarro from Macclesfield Town and Mark Wright from Walsall; and forwards Drewe Broughton from Chester City and Kevin Gallen from Queens Park Rangers.^{[citation needed]}

Summary and aftermath

Dean Lewington made the most appearances for the club in the 2007–08 season.

On 29 September 2007 Milton Keynes Dons reached first place and stayed there for the rest of the season except for one game week. The lowest position the club occupied was 19th after the first round of fixtures. For the first time in their history, the MK Dons had a better record away than at home in the league. The team won 18 matches, drew three and lost two away, compared to winning 11, drawing seven and losing five at home. Dean Lewington recorded the highest number of appearances during the season, appearing in 53 of the MK Dons' 55 matches. Mark Wright was the Dons' top scorer in the league and in all competitions, with 11 league goals and 15 in total. Three other players, Keith Andrews, Lloyd Dyer and Aaron Wilbraham, reached double figures.

As a result of their promotion the Milton Keynes Dons returned to Football League One after two seasons in League Two. Prior to the club's return to League One, the MK Dons released Drewe Broughton, Matt Carbon, Sam Collins, Liam Kelly, Jake Livermore and Kieran Murphy, while Mustapha Carayol, Lloyd Dyer and Gareth Edds left on their own accord for Torquay United, Leicester City and Tranmere Rovers. New players to join were midfielders Flavien Belson from FC Metz, Peter Leven from Chesterfield and Florian Sturm from FC Vaduz.

Competitions

League Two

Main article: 2007–08 Football League Two

Final table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Milton Keynes Dons (C,P)	46	29	10	7	82	37	+45	97
2	Peterborough United (P)	46	28	8	10	84	43	+41	92
3	Hereford United (P)	46	26	10	10	72	41	+31	88
4	Stockport County (P)	46	24	10	12	72	54	+18	82
5	Rochdale	46	23	11	12	77	54	+23	80

Source: Sky Sports

Matches

Win

Draw

Loss

Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Scorers	Attendance	Position	Ref
11 August 2007 – 15:00	Bury	Home	1–2	Andrews	7,740	19	[3]
18 August 2007 – 15:00	Macclesfield Town	Away	3–3	Andrews, Knight, Cameron	2,257	17	[4]
25 August 2007 – 15:00	Shrewsbury Town	Home	3–0	Knight, Wilbraham, Dyer	7,380	10	[5]
1 September 2007 – 15:00	Rochdale	Away	2–3	Gallen (2)	2,743	12	[6]
7 September 2007 – 19:45	Notts County	Home	3–0	Andrews, Swailes, Wilbraham	7,977	8	[7]
15 September 2007 – 15:00	Brentford	Away	3–0	Andrews (2), Johnson	4,476	6	[8]
22 September 2007 – 15:00	Darlington	Home	1–0	Diallo	7,901	5	[9]
29 September 2007 – 15:00	Morecambe	Away	1–0	Dyer	2,688	1	[10]
2 October 2007 – 19:45	Mansfield Town	Away	2–1	Stirling, Dyer	1,984	1	[11]
6 October 2007 – 15:00	Bradford City	Home	2–1	Andrews, Swailes	7,903	1	[12]
14 October 2007 – 13:30	Lincoln City	Home	4–0	Knight (2), Dyer, Wilbraham	13,037	1	[13]
20 October 2007 – 15:00	Hereford United	Away	1–0	Wright	3,936	1	[14]
27 October 2007 – 15:00	Stockport County	Home	0–2		8,290	1	[15]
3 November 2007 – 15:00	Wycombe Wanderers	Away	1–1	Cameron	5,929	1	[16]
6 November 2007 – 19:45	Grimsby Town	Home	2–0	Wilbraham, Wright	6,797	1	[17]
17 November 2007 – 15:00	Chester City	Away	2–0	Wright, Johnson	3,102	1	[18]
24 November 2007 – 15:00	Chesterfield	Home	1–2	Wright	9,638	1	[19]
4 December 2007 – 19:45	Dagenham & Redbridge	Away	1–0	Diallo	1,880	1	[20]
8 December 2007 – 15:00	Accrington Stanley	Home	5–0	Andrews, Navarro, Cameron, Dyer (2)	6,917	1	[21]
15 December 2007 – 15:00	Peterborough United	Away	2–1	Gallen, Andrews	10,351	1	[22]
21 December 2007 – 19:45	Brentford	Home	1–1	Gallen	8,445	1	[23]
26 December 2007 – 15:00	Notts County	Away	2–1	Wright, Johnson	5,106	1	[24]
29 December 2007 – 15:00	Darlington	Away	1–0	Johnson	5,304	1	[25]
1 January 2008 – 15:00	Mansfield Town	Home	1–0	Andrews	9,583	1	[26]
5 January 2008 – 15:00	Rotherham United	Away	1–0	Wright	5,421	1	[27]
12 January 2008 – 15:00	Barnet	Home	0–1		9,881	1	[28]
19 January 2008 – 15:00	Wrexham	Away	0–1		4,319	1	[29]
26 January 2008 – 15:00	Rochdale	Home	0–1		7,882	1	[30]
29 January 2008 – 19:45	Macclesfield Town	Home	1–1	O'Hanlon	6,483	1	[31]
2 February 2008 – 15:00	Bury	Away	5–1	Wright (3), Dyer, Gallen	2,241	1	[32]
9 February 2008 – 15:00	Rotherham United	Home	1–1	Gallen	9,455	1	[33]
12 February 2008 – 19:45	Shrewsbury Town	Away	3–3	Wright (2), Gallen	5,474	1	[34]
23 February 2008 – 15:00	Barnet	Away	2–0	Navarro, Dyer	2,495	1	[35]
1 March 2008 – 15:00	Chester City	Home	1–0	Swailes	8,172	1	[36]
7 March 2008 – 19:45	Grimsby Town	Away	1–0	O'Hanlon	4,106	1	[37]
10 March 2008 – 19:45	Chesterfield	Away	2–1	Andrews, Dyer	3,834	1	[38]
15 March 2008 – 15:00	Dagenham & Redbridge	Home	4–0	Wilbraham (2), Dyer, Gallen	9,417	1	[39]
21 March 2008 – 15:00	Peterborough United	Home	1–1	Wilbraham	14,521	1	[40]
24 March 2008 – 15:00	Accrington Stanley	Away	1–0	Wright	1,559	1	[41]
4 April 2008 – 19:45	Lincoln City	Away	2–1	Regan, Johnson	3,896	2	[42]
8 April 2008 – 19:45	Wrexham	Home	4–1	Swailes, Wilbraham (2), O'Hanlon	8,646	1	[43]
12 April 2008 – 15:00	Wycombe Wanderers	Home	2–2	Wilbraham, O'Hanlon	12,747	1	[44]
15 April 2008 – 19:45	Hereford United	Home	0–0		11,428	1	[45]
19 April 2008 – 15:00	Stockport County	Away	3–2	Wright, Navarro, Andrews	8,838	1	[46]
26 April 2008 – 15:00	Bradford City	Away	2–1	Stirling, Dyer	14,609	1	[47]
3 May 2008 – 15:00	Morecambe	Home	1–1	Wilbraham	17,250	1	[48]

FA Cup

Main article: 2007–08 FA Cup

Matches

Win

Draw

Loss

Date	Round	Opponent	Venue	Result	Scorers	Attendance	Ref
10 November 2007 – 15:00	First round	Crewe Alexandra	Away	1–2	Johnson	3,049	[49]

League Cup

Main article: 2007–08 Football League Cup

Matches

Win

Draw

Loss

Date	Round	Opponent	Venue	Result	Scorers	Attendance	Ref
14 August 2007 – 19:45	First round	Ipswich Town	Home	3–3[a]	Knight, Bruce (o.g.), Gallen	7,496	[50]
28 August 2007 – 19:45	Second round	Sheffield United	Home	2–3[b]	Broughton, McGovern	7,943	[51]

1. After extra-time. 2–2 at the conclusion of 90 minutes. MK Dons won 5–3 on penalties.
2. After extra-time. 2–2 at the conclusion of 90 minutes.

League Trophy

Main article: 2007–08 Football League Trophy

Matches

Win

Draw

Loss

Date	Round	Opponent	Venue	Result	Scorers	Attendance	Ref
9 October 2007 – 19:45	Second round	Peterborough United	Home	3–1	Wright (2), Cameron	5,087	[52]
13 November 2007 – 19:45	Quarter-final (South)	Bournemouth	Away	2–0	Andrews, Swailes	3,247	[53]
8 January 2008 – 19:45	Semi-final (South)	Gillingham	Away	1–1[a]	Johnson	3,717	[54]
19 February 2008 – 19:45	Area final (South) 1st leg	Swansea City	Away	1–0	Johnson	10,125	[55]
25 February 2008 – 19:45	Area final (South) 2nd leg	Swansea City	Home	0–1[b]		9,757	[56]
30 March 2008 – 13:15	Final	Grimsby Town	Neutral	2–0	Andrews, O'Hanlon	56,618	[57]

1. MK Dons won 5–4 on penalties.
2. Aggregate score 1–1. MK Dons won 5–4 on penalties.

Player details

List of squad players, including number of appearances by competition.

Players with squad numbers struck through and marked † left the club during the playing season.

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		League Two		FA Cup		League Cup		Other[a]
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1 †	GK	NGA	Ademola Bankole	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2	DF	ENG	Jude Stirling	41	2	34	2	0	0	2	0	5	0
3	DF	ENG	Dean Lewington	53	0	45	0	1	0	1	0	6	0
4	MF	IRL	Keith Andrews	45	14	41	12	0	0	0	0	4	2
5	DF	GUI	Drissa Diallo	35	2	30	2	0	0	1	0	4	0
6	DF	ENG	Sean O'Hanlon	51	5	43	4	1	0	1	0	6	1
7 †	MF	SCO	Jon-Paul McGovern	5	1	3	0	0	0	2	1	0	0
8	FW	ENG	Kevin Gallen	31	9	24	8	1	0	2	1	4	0
9 †	FW	GER	Felix Bastians	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
9 †	FW	ENG	Leon Knight	18	5	17	4	0	0	1	1	0	0
10	FW	SCO	Colin Cameron	35	4	29	3	1	0	0	0	5	1
11	FW	ENG	Lloyd Dyer	50	11	45	11	0	0	2	0	3	0
12	GK	FRA	Willy Guéret	52	0	46	0	0	0	0	0	6	0
13	MF	AUS	Gareth Edds	11	0	7	0	1	0	2	0	1	0
14	FW	ENG	Mark Wright	41	15	34	13	1	0	2	0	4	2
15	FW	ENG	Drewe Broughton	19	1	13	0	1	0	1	1	4	0
16	FW	ENG	Aaron Wilbraham	40	10	35	10	1	0	2	0	2	0
17	DF	ENG	Kieran Murphy	5	0	3	0	0	0	2	0	0	0
18	FW	ENG	John Miles	12	0	12	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
18 †	FW	ENG	Scott Taylor	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
19 †	FW	ENG	John Hastings	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
19	DF	ENG	Carl Regan	9	1	9	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
20	MF	ENG	Alan Navarro	47	3	39	3	1	0	2	0	5	0
21	MF	ENG	Luke Howell	11	0	8	0	0	0	1	0	2	0
22 †	MF	ENG	Jake Livermore	5	0	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
22 †	MF	RSA	Bally Smart	11	0	8	0	1	0	0	0	2	0
23	FW	USA	Jemal Johnson	46	8	39	5	1	1	0	0	6	2
24	DF	ENG	Matt Carbon	4	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
25	DF	ENG	Danny Swailes	47	5	40	4	1	0	1	0	5	1
26 †	DF	ENG	Sam Page	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
27	DF	ENG	Sam Collins	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
28	MF	SCO	Liam Kelly	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
29	GK	ENG	Nathan Abbey	3	0	0	0	1	0	2	0	0	0
30	MF	GAM	Mustapha Carayol	2	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0
31	GK	ENG	Laurie Walker	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
32	MF	ENG	Jordan Hadfield	13	0	13	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
35	DF	ENG	Adam Chicksen	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
36	FW	ENG	Sam Baldock	9	0	5	0	1	0	0	0	3	0

1. Includes Football League Trophy and 2006–07 Football League Two play-offs.

Transfers

Transfers in

Date from	Position	Name	From	Fee	Ref.
5 July 2007	FW	Kevin Gallen	Free agent[a]	Free transfer	[58]
11 July 2007	MF	Mark Wright	Free agent[b]
25 July 2007	FW	Drewe Broughton	Free agent[c]		[58]
1 August 2007	MF	Colin Cameron	Free agent[d]		[59]
3 August 2007	FW	Mustapha Carayol	Free agent[e]		[59]
10 August 2007	GK	Nathan Abbey	Free agent[f]		[59]
	MF	Alan Navarro	Free agent[g]		[59]
11 August 2007	GK	Willy Guéret	Free agent[h]		[59]
	DF	Luke Howell	Free agent[i]		[59]
19 August 2007	DF	Danny Swailes	Macclesfield Town	Undisclosed	[59]
31 August 2007	FW	Jemal Johnson	Wolverhampton Wanderers		[59]
4 December 2007	DF	Matt Carbon	Free agent[j]	Free transfer
1 February 2008	DF	Carl Regan	Macclesfield Town	Undisclosed	[60]
	MF	Craig Dobson	Stevenage Borough		[60]

Transfers out

Date from	Position	Name	To	Fee	Ref.
1 July 2007	MF	Ben Harding	Released[k]
	MF	Gary Smith	Released[l]
3 July 2007	FW	Clive Platt	Colchester United	£300,000	[58]
9 August 2007	FW	Izale McLeod	Charlton Athletic	£1,100,000	[59]
31 August 2007	MF	Jon-Paul McGovern	Swindon Town	Undisclosed	[59]

Loans in

Start date	Position	Name	From	End date	Ref.
15 November 2007	MF	Jordan Hadfield	Macclesfield Town	End of season[m]	[61]
25 January 2008	FW	John Miles	Accrington Stanley	End of season	[62]

Loans out

Start date	Position	Name	To	End date	Ref.
18 September 2007	MF	John Hastings	Ebbsfleet United	18 October 2007	[63]
28 September 2007	FW	Sam Collins	Kettering Town	Unknown	[63]
15 October 2007	DF	Sam Page	Hendon	15 December 2007	[64]
18 October 2007	FW	Scott Taylor	Rochdale	18 November 2007	[64]
26 October 2007	FW	Mustapha Carayol	Crawley Town	End of season	[61]
16 November 2007	DF	Kieran Murphy			[61]
20 November 2007	MF	John Hastings	Maidenhead United	Unknown	[61]
22 November 2007	FW	Sam Collins	Hendon		[61]
25 January 2008	FW	Drewe Broughton	Wrexham	April 2008	[62]

1. Previous club: Chester City.
2. Previous club: Walsall.
3. Previous club: Chester City.
4. Previous club: Coventry City.
5. Previous club: Macclesfield Town.
6. Previous club: Brentford.
7. Previous club: Macclesfield Town.
8. Previous club: Swansea City.
9. Previous club: Gillingham.
10. Previous club: New Zealand Knights.
11. Joined Aldershot Town on 6 August 2007.
12. Joined Brentford on 1 August 2007.
13. Originally one month loan, extended until end of season.