Emotional end to Lewington's Stadium MK days
The MK Dons captain bid farewell to Stadium MK on Saturday
It was an emotional day for Dean Lewington as he was given a hero’s send-off for his final appearance at Stadium MK on Saturday.
The 40-year-old skipper hangs his boots up at the end of the season, and was moved as he emerged from the tunnel, flanked by his daughters, to a guard of honour by both Grimsby Town and MK Dons prior to kick-off.
Playing for over an hour though in his first appearance since November, Lewington fittingly put a foot wrong before be was substituted, replaced by Laurence Maguire to an ovation from the 10,000+ crowd at MK1 for the final time.
“I did appreciate it,” he said afterwards. “I’m not always one for emotions but it got to me a bit today. It was the best atmosphere of the season in terms of the noise and the colour. It was a great effort from everyone.
“It was weirdly emotional. I felt funny for a couple of days, I didn’t realise I’d get a guard of honour, I was walking out with the girls, it was a little emotional! But coming off I was ok, I had the game emotions. This will take a while to get over I think before I start something new.
“I’ve not played 90 minutes all season, and my last game was in November so there was no chance I’d last the whole game! I could feel my legs get a bit tired, I didn’t want to be at fault for a goal or cost the team so I felt I did ok.
“I went up for a corner in the second-half and I was running back thinking ‘I don’t know if I want to do many more of these!’ So I let Cal (Callum Hendry) know to tell the bench I was ready, and that was that.”
While it was not the fairy tale ending for Lewington, with the club unable to finish any higher than 18th this season, he feels it is in safe hands with new boss Paul Warne.
In typically honest fashion, Lewington said: “It has been a bad season, there is no dressing it up. We have hit rock bottom, and hopefully this appointment is a start in the right direction. We’ve got someone we can get behind, get some stability and get some success.
“We shouldn’t be in League Two, and we shouldn’t be in 18th in League Two either. It’s a big summer for the club, and hopefully the good times are not too far away.”