MacGillivray's move may not be dead yet as Dons boss praises replacement

Mike Williamson praised one MK Dons goalkeeper but would not be drawn on the future of another following the 2-1 win over Tranmere Rovers.

While there was a return for Dan Kemp, making his first league start for the club since August 2022, and a late debut for Kyran Lofthouse after Ethan Robson pulled out of the squad during the warm-up, most of the pre-match talk was about the man between the sticks.

Michael Kelly was handed his first ever EFL start at 27-years-old when he was named first on the team-sheet ahead of Craig MacGillivray, who missed his first league game of the season at Prenton Park. The 31-year-old, who marked his birthday on Friday, had been linked with a move to League One Stevenage this week, but reports claim the deal fell through, and he was given a watching brief for the 2-1 triumph over Rovers. The move though may yet still be in the offing.

When asked about MacGillivray's future at the club, Williamson remained coy, saying: "All I can say, for various reasons, I have to pick what I deem is the strongest team for every game. There are various reasons, but I won't go into that."

Irishman Kelly meanwhile, who remains at the club on a short-term deal, understood to be until the end of January, was only beaten by a cruel deflection after 13 minutes in an otherwise solid performance against Tranmere. And having played understudy for most of the campaign, Williamson said the former Carlisle United stopper earned his plaudits.

"He deserves a lot of credit," Williamson added. "It's football and the nature of it. Today has been a really colourful day.

"Kells has been fantastic, he's another really big character in the group, and brings people together and he has deserved this. He was fantastic."