Another Slow Start Costs Us Dearly at MK

Well, that was a tough one to take on Saturday, wasn't it? Another game where we just didn't get going until it was too late. We found ourselves 3-0 down with about 20 minutes to go at Stadium MK and, fair play, we nearly pulled off a mental comeback, but ended up losing 3-2.

It was great to see Seb Palmer-Houlden get off the mark for us on 76 minutes, and Jonny Williams popping up with another one deep in stoppage time gave us a bit of hope, but we left ourselves too much to do. That’s two losses on the bounce now, and it’s the first time we’ve been beaten away from home in the league since all the way back in March. We’re sitting fourth in the table, which is decent, but the chasing pack is getting closer. With the gaffer recovering at home, Dobbo was in charge, and this definitely wasn't the reaction we were all hoping for.

What the papers and fans are saying

You don’t have to look far to see what went wrong. Kent Online are all over it, pointing out we’ve gone behind early in four of the last five games now. It’s becoming a proper habit. Dobbo said it himself after the game – we "gave ourselves a mountain to climb." He was happy with the fightback but called their third goal "sloppy" and said it killed us. You can’t argue with that. We just looked half-asleep for an hour.

Over on X, the feeling was pretty clear: we’ve got to change things up. A lot of us are getting frustrated with the setup. @SixPointerTom was saying what a lot of us are thinking: give Seb Palmer-Houlden and maybe Vokes a go from the start next week. He said that Andrews and Nevitt just look a bit lost when they don't get the service.

The big talking point was Aaron Rowe at left wing-back. It just doesn't look right. As @RobBaker292 said, the one time he properly beat his man and got a good cross in, Palmer-Houlden scored from it. He’s not a defender. We looked a different team when Max Clark and Lenni Cirino came on down that side. People are crying out for a change in shape, maybe a 4-4-2 or 4-3-3, just something to get us on the front foot.

Of course, you always get a few meltdowns, with one fan calling it "absolute joke rubbish crap," but most of the chat was pretty sensible. We know the players are in there, but we just seem to be playing with the handbrake on from the first whistle.

Man of the Match – Seb Palmer-Houlden

Got to be SPH, hasn't it? He came off the bench and completely changed the feel of the game. He got his first goal for the club, his movement was sharp, and for that last 15 minutes, he actually made us believe we could get something. Jonny Williams deserves a shout for his non-stop running and his late goal, but Palmer-Houlden’s impact was massive. A lot of us are hoping he’s earned a start.

Look, two defeats don't make a crisis, but it's a bit of a wake-up call. We're still right up there in the promotion spots, but we absolutely have to stop giving teams a head start.

Luckily, we don't have to wait long to put it right. We're away to Colchester on Tuesday night in the EFL Trophy. It might not be the league, but a win would do everyone the world of good before we head to Cheltenham on Saturday. Let's just come out of the blocks properly for once, yeah?

Written by Rhys - German Gills