Payne strikes to end Dons’ unbeaten run in defeat to Charlton

Jack Payne scored the only goal of the game as MK Dons’ unbeaten run ended on Tuesday night as they went down 1-0 to Charlton Athletic.

After a poor opening 45 minutes, which saw the first shot come with just seven minutes of it to go, Payne’s 61st minute strike ensured the Addicks victory, while halting Dons’ seven-game undefeated streak.

Results elsewhere mean Dons remain three points clear of the drop zone, with Accrington and Cambridge both losing, while Oxford managed to secure a point against Portsmouth.

Jonathan Leko came back into the side against his former club, replacing Nathan Holland, as Mark Jackson made a single change to his team to face Charlton Atheltic.

While Dons were looking to get over Saturday's heartbreak of conceding a stoppage time equaliser, and Charlton were looking for revenge for a 6-0 thumping at the hands of Ipswich Town, it threatened to be an end-to-end battle.

Instead it turned out to be a 38 minute wait for the first shot on goal. While neither side were especially bad on the ball, so evenly matched were the sides that they effectively cancelled each other out entirely.

Both had little spells of control, but the midfield was congested and fiercely contested and ensured the game was, for the most part, pretty stale and uneventful.

The wait for a shot threatened to drag until the second-half, but Leko, lining up against his former club, finally took aim seven minutes before half-time, forcing keeper Ashley Maynard-Brewer into a save, tipping his drive onto the post.

Jack Payne would fizz one over the bar a couple of minutes later for the visitors - as close as they would come in the first-half.

The second-half wouldn't be a lot better in terms of a spectable, but both sides were a lot less shot-shy than they were in the first 45 minutes. Zak Jules took it almost upon himself to drag Dons forwards at times, with his drive from his own half setting up Mo Eisa, but his effort was matched by keeper Maynard-Brewer.

As the visitors settled back into their stride in the second-half, they began to turn hem Dons into their own half, forcing keeper Jamie Cumming into three important saves to keep them at bay.

But there was not a lot he could do when Payne peeled off to the right of the penalty area, and as Charlton recycled a corner, he lashed past the keeper to give the visitors a 61st minute lead.

From there, Dons struggled to get back into it. Visibly down after conceding, the home side looked void of ideas and failed to spark a chance to get them level again.

Sullay Kaikai made his comeback to the side after six games out but while he gave Dons more of a threat down the right, the Charlton defence sat deep and smothered the hosts out as they claimed all three points.

Referee: Sam Allison

Attendance: 6,600

MK Dons: Cumming, Lewington, Stewart (Holland 88), Tucker, Jules, Watson, Maghoma (Robson 77), McEachran (Devoy 75), Grant (Kaikai 62), Leko (Grigg 77), Eisa

Subs not used: Ravizzoli, Lawrence

Charlton Athletic: Maynard-Brewer, Sessegnon (Mitchell 90), Thomas, Dobson, Hector, Morgan, Rak-Sakyi (Kane 88), Payne, Fraser (Kilkenny 88), Clare (Egbo 76), Leaburn

Subs not used: Wollacott, Henry, Kanu

Booked: Leaburn, Dobson, Kane