Neal Ardley has called on AFC Wimbledon supporters to be the club’s 12th man in their play-off showdown with Accrington Stanley.
The Dons will host Stanley at Kingsmeadow on Saturday night as they look to reach the third tier for the first time since the their formation in 2002.
John Coleman’s side will pose fierce opposition and only missed out on automatic promotion on goal difference as Bristol Rovers leapfrogged them on the final day.
Ardley has likened Accrington’s success on a shoestring budget this season to that of Leicester City’s fairytale Premier League triumph under Claudio Ranieri.
He knows his Dons players will need all the help they can get from the crowd this weekend and has called for positivity from the Wimbledon faithful.
“They’ve got make us much noise as they can and make it as intimidating as possible,” Ardley told Dons Player.
“What they’ve got to try and do for us if they can, it’s an exciting game for all of us and there is an anxiety to achieve what we want to achieve, and what we don’t want is for that coming from them onto the players.
“It’s going to be tight, it’s going to be tense, there’s not going to be much in the game. They need to get behind the players even when things aren’t flowing and going right, and that’s in both games, we’ve got to be really positive after a great season. That could be the thing that pushes us over the line.”
Connor Smith is back in full training after suffering a painful neck injury in the narrow victory over Newport last weekend to boost Wimbledon’s chances.
Ardley acknowledged there were a few niggles in the camp but reckons the mood is good ahead of a massive game for the club tomorrow.
“Preparations have gone well with the training and atmosphere among the boys,” added the Dons manager.
“The atmosphere is great, even with the players who think they may not be starting. There is no sulking, everyone gets on and is pushing for the team. There were some real positives last week, particularly getting that edge back for one or two was great.
“We know that we have five very good centre forwards at this club. We can call on any one of them at any time in these next two games and they could be the difference.
“I’ve been trying to put together a team like this for a couple of years and it has been hard. We’ve had a better budget this season and we’ve tried to spend it wisely.
“We had a big meeting in the summer with all the staff to try and see what promotion looked like and what we thought we needed. We worked really hard to try and put that together.
“The first-half of the season was inconsistent, but in the second-half of the season we got 45 points out of 23 games, which was strong. That showed real progress.
“We are just trying to give enough focus to the game, without killing the boys with it every minute of the day.”
