MK Dons were knocked out of the Carabao Cup after a 5-0 defeat by Championship outfit Watford.
Mattie Pollock, a Tom Ince hat-trick and Kwadwo Baah were the scorers for the Hornets, who advanced into Round Two and saw MK Dons knocked out of the competition in Round One for the second season in a row.
Defeat meant the Dons were unable to repeat their victory at Vicarage Road when they knocked Watford out of the Carabao Cup at the same stage of the competition two years ago.
A reshuffled Dons side that took to the field featured 8 changes to the starting line-up from defeat to Bradford City on the opening day of the season.
Watford had also opted to make changes to the side that beat Millwall on the opening day of the Championship season, and keeper Jonathan Bond made an early stop to keep out Tommy Leigh’s ambitious long-range lob.
But the second tier side largely controlled possession and began to knock on the door the longer the first half wore on.
Ince missed an early chance when he burst through and lobbed Nathan Harness, only for his shot to miss the target.
Watford then opened the scoring with 24 minutes on the clock. An Ince corner picked out captain Pollock, who saw a looping header creep over Harness and two Dons defenders on the line before arcing into the back of the net.
Tom Dele-Bashiru saw a drive kept out by Harness later in the first half after an initial shot had been blocked, but the home side moved 2-0 up in first half stoppage time.
A long pass released Ryan Andrews behind the Dons defender, and he squared for Ince, with the son of former Dons boss Paul in the right place to score a tap-in.
MK Dons made a triple change at half-time and the visitors duly began to offer more going forward, with Bond making saves to deny Joe Tomlinson and sub Stephen Wearne.
But the Dons weren’t able to find a goal back to reduce the deficit, and instead three goals in ten minutes just after the hour mark firmly took the game away from the Dons.
Watford’s third goal came in the 64th minute, as a pass from Mamadou Doumbia released Baah, and his strike from an angle went through Harness and in for 3-0.
It was quickly followed by the goal that made it 4-0, when Ince collected the loose ball and thumped a shot that Harness was again unable to prevent from going in.
A fifth then followed a few moments later, which saw Ince pick up a hat-trick when he scored the rebound after Harness could only parry Dele-Bashiru’s initial shot.
The rest of the game duly passed without much incident, with the Dons’ attention now turning to get a first competitive win of the new season on Saturday when they travel to play Colchester United in Essex.
Willen Hospice have announced two family fun events next month t o help towards their fundraising efforts.
The hospice will be hosting two events in the form of the Mini Moo on Sunday 15 September at Willen Lake, and a weekend takeover of Gulliver’s Land on Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 September.
The first is Mini Moo sponsored by Brioche Pasquier UK, which takes place near the hospice itself and is a popular family event which sees hundreds of children walk, run or scoot a sponsored lap of Willen’s North Lake, receiving a finisher’s medal at the end.
Families can look forward to music, games stalls and the Hospice’s very own mascot, Flo the Cow, cheering the kids on! This year’s event has a ‘moo-vies’ theme, with all Mini-Moovers encouraged to ‘Let it Flo’ and dress up in their best film-inspired costumes. The Mini Moo is open to children aged 0–14 years and tickets cost £12.
The following weekend, Willen Hospice will be taking over Gulliver’s Land. As well as all the usual rides, there will be extra stalls and games raising money for the Hospice. Tickets are at a discounted price, with the first 500 just £12.50, and £2.50 of every sale goes to Willen Hospice.
Nikki Poole, Willen Hospice’s Events & Community Fundraising Manager, said, “We’re inviting families to put the ‘fun’ into fundraising this September. Our Mini Moo is one of our most popular children’s events, with families taking part year after year, and then just one week later we’ll be setting up stalls at Gulliver’s Land ready for another fantastic weekend for Willen Hospice.”
The charity is looking for volunteers to help out at the Gulliver’s Weekend takeover. Anyone who can help out in the morning will be able to bring up to two children for free in the afternoon, and vice versa. Email [email protected] to find out more.
Willen Hospice provides free, specialist care for local families affected by a life-limiting illness. Patients are cared for in their home by the Hospice’s community team or in its 15-bed In-Patient Unit overlooking Willen Lake.
Only 15% of the charity’s running costs are met by ongoing NHS funding, meaning the shortfall has to be covered by generous local supporters and fundraising events such as the Mini Moo and the Gulliver’s Land Takeover.
Book now at www.willen-hospice.org.uk/events
Northampton Town have signed defender Luke Mbete on a season-long loan from Manchester City.
Mbete, who turns 21 next month, is Northampton’s ninth signing ahead of the new campaign, and the Cobblers’ third loan arrival.
The defender has previously spent time on loan with Bolton and Huddersfield and with Dutch side Den Bosch.
Mbete has also made three appearances for the Manchester City senior team, including a start for his first appearance for the Premier League giants when the Citizens played Wycombe in an EFL Cup tie in 2021, while he also featured for them on their pre-season tour.
The defender has also been capped by England at youth level up to and including the under-21s.
Northampton boss Jon Brady told the club’s official website that he was delighted to bring Mbete to Sixfields.
He said, “He is very highly rated by Manchester City and we thank them for trusting us to continue the development of one of their young players. I am sure our reputation for developing players has again counted in our favour.
“Luke has a decent amount of experience in the Championship, League One and also abroad, and he has been in and around the Manchester City first team, both on their bench in the Premier League and also playing regularly during pre-season.
“He is keen to develop and from our conversations we know he is very keen to come here and play his part.
“He fits our profile, he has a lot of attributes as a brave defender but also an intelligent footballer who is comfortable on the ball.
“We were looking for another left footed centre back and we are delighted to have recruited a player of Luke’s quality.”
Luton Town endured a 4-1 defeat at home to Burnley in the first match of the new Championship season.
Against a side also defeated from last season’s Premier League, the Hatters endured a difficult start after fell 2-0 down in the first half through goals by Josh Brownhill and Wilson Odobert.
Tahith Chong scored a goal back for Luton, but hopes of a comeback were extinguished when Dara O’Shea and Vitinho scored two goals in eight minutes to put Burnley out of Luton’s reach.
Luton handed new signings Reull Walters and Shandon Baptiste debuts while injuries issues saw Zack Nelson and Joe Johnson both make starts.
Burnley would however make a flying start at Kenilworth Road as the Clarets took the lead after six minutes. A through-pass down the left flank by Lucas Pires released Brownhill down the Burnley left, and he duly broke into the box before beating Thomas Kaminski.
Elijah Adebayo saw a strike blocked by James Trafford and a knock-down by Carlton Morris was intercepted by Burnley.
Luton had a few half-chances but couldn’t find a way through, and would instead fall 2-0 down with 8 minutes of the first half remaining.
The goal came through a similar routine to the Clarets’ first goal, as a pass by Conor Roberts down the right flank released Odobert, who duly threaded a shot through Kaminski’s legs.
Needing a comeback, Luton nearly found a way through when James Trafford fumbled a cross and Adebayo got the ball off the bar.
But Burnley could’ve extended their lead further, as O’Shea saw a header well saved by Kaminski and Vitinho struck the post.
However, Luton would grab a goal back within ten minutes of the restart as Alfie Doughty received the ball in the box and squared for Chong to reach ahead of Trafford and tap into the back of the net.
Luton struggled to create chances for an equaliser, however, and Burnley would grab a third with less than 20 minutes to go as O’Shea headed home from a Burnley corner.
Vitinho would strike an effort wide but the Brazilian would score as the game moved into the final ten minutes. Lyle Foster won the ball back for the visitors and the South African charged forward before feeding Vitinho, who fed a shot beyond Kaminski.
Despite six minutes of added time, Luton were unable to grab chances for a consolation, and the Hatters slipped to defeat on the first day of the campaign. Rob Edwards’ side will seek to pick themselves up when they play Portsmouth in their first away game of the campaign on Saturday.
Milton Keynes City Council have announced a scheme for new homes to accomodate young people at risk of homelessness.
The City Council announced a partnership with the Milton Keynes YMCA to accommodate 51 young people at risk of homelessness into new homes, with those who will benefit to be housed in one and two-bedroom properties that will be acquired with funding from Homes England.
Further support will be available through an accompanying grant of £500,000 from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG).
MK City Council secured the funding as part of the Government’s Single Homelessness Accommodation scheme. People aged between 18-25 currently based at the YMCA’s campus in Central Milton Keynes will be given priority to move into these homes as part of wider work to reduce the risk of them returning to the streets.
Around 60% of young people housed by MKYMCA identify as having mental health needs, while 50% have a background of trauma. Residents at MKYMCA have access to a high level of support at the campus in the city centre, but there is a lack of affordable move-on accommodation available. The partnership between the city council and MKYMCA will give people the support they need and access to secure homes with affordable rents.
The city council is due to enter into a formal agreement with all partners involved in the project.
Cabinet Member for Housing, Cllr Ed Hume, said, “We know that access to affordable housing is a major issue, especially for young people. I’m proud that we have secured this funding and are working with MKYMCA to give these young people a more hopeful future after the challenges they have faced. A new home is more than just a roof over someone’s head, it’s a fresh opportunity to get settled, access work and build a better future.”
