Plenty of promise shown by Dons pair on their debuts

New signings Matt Smith and Kaine Keslter Hayden could not have asked for worse conditions to make their MK Dons debuts, but showed glimpses of what they can add to the side on Tuesday night against Fleetwood.

Kesler Hayden was a livewire in the first half especially, providing a big threat from the right flank, while Smith grew into the game with some decent touches and passes, though gave the ball away to spark Fleetwood’s move which led to their equaliser five minutes into the second half.

“I was pleased with many elements of what they did in their first game,” said head coach Liam Manning after the 1-1 draw.

“They’re still adapting to what we want them to do.

“I thought they showed some good moments - Kaine looked a threat when he got forward in the first half especially, and a couple of the balls Matty played showed a lot of awareness.

“I’m really pleased and I think they’ll go from strength to strength.”

Conor Coventry, who played alongside Smith in the centre of the park, praised the former Manchester City man for his debut performance, adding: “He's an intelligent, nice technical player. He put his tackles in as well, and he's a really top player. We've got some great midfielder players so there's a lot of competition.

“They both did really well - it was a really tough game to come into. They'll add a lot to the group.”