Chairman aims to have Dons training at the Bowl this year

Pete Winkelman has reiterated his plan to have MK Dons' first team training at the National Bowl before the end of the year.

Plans for a training ground in Milton Keynes have been ongoing almost since the club move to the city in 2003, but the move in 2019 to buy the concert venue with a view to converting it finally put light at the end of the tunnel for the club.

Russell Martin spoke openly last season about his desire for a more consistent training facility after Dons struggled at their Woughton on the Green base, and then suffered injuries later in the season when they were forced onto 3G surfaces.

But chairman Winkelman hopes to have short-term plans submitted to Milton Keynes Council soon, though it will be the bare minimum to ensure the first team can train there before longer term plans are submitted.

"I can't invent the Bowl I want straight away," said the chairman. "What we can do is be able to start and get the first team pitches.

"The first planning application will be about that and a temporary building. They'll still be working from the stadium, but it's a mark in the sand and the biggest impact we can have on the team. It's what Russ demands and I want to be able to deliver.

"The Bowl is the beginning of the process. The whole thing will take longer because I cannot get all the developments together yet. But we'll be putting in the application in the next few weeks and making a start later in the year."