Alan Bennett believes he has sent a clear message to AFC Wimbledon manager Neal Ardley ahead of Tuesday’s FA Cup replay with York City - pick me against the Minstermen!
He was named man of the match by club sponsors at Kingsmeadow and kept a clean-sheet as part of a backline without the injured Andy Frampton.
Bennett said: “To be fair to Framps he’s been unlucky. I was bitterly disappointed to have been left out of the team before that. I was really chomping at the bit to get back in the team.
"It was nice to get a win today, a clean sheet and get man of the match because that will send a good strong message to the manager.
“It was ugly today and a bit League Two at times but I don’t care. I’ll take that every week. It might not be the best entertainment-wise but we did what we needed to do.
"We spoke before the game about the givens, about desire, hard-work and they have to be there all the time. I think we showed those.
“When I’ve been successful in this league in the past I’ve found you play 46 games and you play well for probably 15 of those, your bang average for 25. After that you just have to try your best to hang on for draws. Consistency is the key for us. We need to nail that down in blocks of games.”
Should Wimbledon beat York in the midweek replay, a trip to one of Bennett’s former clubs Wycombe Wanderers is lined up for round two.
The defender admits himself he didn’t have the best time with the Chairboys and would relish the opportunity to show the Adams Park crowd what he’s really made of.
Bennett added: “I feel good and I’m really looking forward to all the games coming up. I’ll be really disappointed if I’m not playing on Tuesday. It’s a cup game and it could lead to a game against Wycombe.
"I don’t really feel I ever made an impact on the fans when I was at Wycombe and the fans never saw me at my best. It would be nice to get through."
