Neal Ardley believes patience is needed at AFC Wimbledon as his new squad blends together.

The Dons manager added six new faces to the Kingsmeadow ranks over the summer as he assembled a squad for his first crack at League One football.

Ryan Clarke was installed as first-choice goalkeeper with Sean Kelly eventually signing a deal to become an option at left-back following a pre-season trial period.

Chris Whelpdale and former Tottenham Hotspur youngster Dean Parrett have bolstered the Wimbledon midfield having joined from Stevenage.

Tyrone Barnett and Dominic Poleon are now proving competition up front in place of the departed Adebayo Akinfenwa and Ade Azeez.

That’s a significant turnover in playing staff and Ardley realises the new boys will require time to fully bed in get to grips with his methods.

Lyle Taylor was the undoubted star of last season’s promotion-winning campaign but even he did not start to fire until after his suspension in September.

The goals started to flow for the striker from October onwards and Ardley has his fingers crossed for a similar flurry in 2016/17 before too long.

He said: “As I say every season, the new lads are getting used to us. They are getting used to the way we keep pushing and driving them and sometimes we do things differently without the ball.

Keeper: Ryan Clarke of AFC Wimbledon in action
New boy: Chris Whelpdale of AFC Wimbledon in action

“Some people have been taught different ways and it takes a while to get used to our ways, just look at Lyle Taylor and Tom Elliott last year. It happens and it takes a while for people to bed in.

“We’ve got enough quality players from last year that we can dip the new ones in build them up steadily because they will become really good players for us. They are fantastic characters and have gelled really well with the group.

“We are very demanding and I think some of them aren’t used to tracking back so much but that’s what we demand of them. I feel we’ve got enough that we can be competitive this season.”

The Dons picked up their first point of the new season at Northampton on Saturday to stop the rot after three league losses and an early EFL Cup exit.

After a hectic run of fixtures, Ardley now has a clear week to prepare his side for another tough test at Rochdale on Saturday.

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