Goal-scorer Aaron Collins spoke after MK Dons’ 2-2 draw with Oxford on opening day

Leaving the pitch on opening day felt a lot different this season compared to last for Aaron Collins.

A year ago, Collins came off the pitch after the drab 0-0 draw with Oldham Athletic unknowingly carrying a shoulder fracture which would rule him out for six weeks.

Fast forward a year, the Welshman could have had a hat-trick against Oxford United, coming off the field with a goal to his name in a far more enthralling 2-2 draw in the League One opener.

“Last year’s first game was not the way to start the season,” he said. “This year is the way I wanted to start: getting that goal, getting up and running, being confident going into next Saturday.”

His goal, a close range header after great work from Ryan Wintle down the Dons right, could and perhaps should have been the winner, with the visitors conceding deep into time added on at the Kassam Stadium, Cieron Brown’s goal levelling things at the death for Aaron Ramsey’s side to share the spoils.

Collins continued: “It’s a point on the board, and we can go into next week with confidence. Not that the early games don’t mean anything, they mean a lot, but it’s only after ten or 15 games that you know whether you’re in the right place.

“If we can pick up points in the next few games we can see where we are in the league, and then look again at ten games. Our goal is to be up there after those games.

“Obviously as a group we’re frustrated but there were a lot of positives to take.”

With Dons having built the squad last season to hit the ground running in League One this season, Collins said the mentality of the group is vastly evolved from where it was last year heading into what was their promotion-winning League Two campaign.

“We built a good squad last season and we’ve built on that again this summer,” he added. “The team was built for League One and we managed to do the job last season to get us here.

“Now we’re back in the division, and it feels like this team is built for the Championship. We’ve got a lot of work to do, but as a team, we’re very talented but the hard work is what will get us there over the 46 games. One down, 45 to go and we go into next week full of confidence.

“We’ve got those relationships coming into this season after winning promotion, so confidence was always going to be high. The new lads are coming in and settling into a winning group, and we’re now building those relationships too.

“We looked a lot more confident than we did last year.”