Harvie accuses Dons team-mates of ‘not wanting it enough’ at Port Vale

Daniel Harvie accused some of his MK Dons team-mates of ‘not wanting it enough’ after another awful performance saw them beaten 1-0 by Port Vale on Saturday.

Barely registering a shot on goal all afternoon at Vale Park, Mark Jackson’s side fell four points from safety as Aaron Donnelly’s 23rd minute goal - losing for a fourth time in five matches.

The lacklustre performance, according to captain for the day Harvie, was a long shot off the standards expected at the club, and he felt some of the team shirked their responsibilities in Burslem.

“We didn't want it enough,” he said. “It came down to first and second balls and how much you want it compared to the other team, and it felt in the first 15 minutes, we didn't want it enough.

“On Tuesday (in the 1-1 draw with Lincoln City), we didn't start well, we were poor in the first-half but we got a bit better. I felt it was the same again today.

“We can't wait until the second-half to start playing, we need to come out aggressive on the front foot and take it to teams.

“It feels like a goal goes in and we wake up, and we realise it's time to get back into the game. That has to go, and that has to go quick. We can't start games like that. We need to want it more than the other team.

“We've been sloppy on the ball, not playing into the right areas, we couldn't clear balls, we were shanking it, we weren't dealing with it. It should be bread and butter. We've got to earn the right to play the way we want to play. But we cannot start like that.

“As players, we need to step up and show how much it means to us to stay in the league. There's no hiding it, that's where we are.”