Portsmouth and Rotherham games 'not as crucial' after recent run

MK Dons' win over Bolton Wanderers on Saturday saw them move 13 points clear of League One relegation, but also allowed them a bit of leeway when they travel to Portsmouth and Rotherham, says Luke Williams.

With their safety in the division looking more and more assured of late, the importance of picking up points on the road at Pompey - who are unbeaten at home this season - and the Millers - who are top of the table - is not the be-all-and-end-all for MK Dons' season.

Tranmere Rovers, who occupy the final relegation spot, are at Shrewsbury Town on Tuesday night while Dons are at Portsmouth, and even though the gap to the drop zone could close to 10 points, Rochdale and AFC Wimbledon are also sit between Dons and the bottom three.

"The important thing is to go away and be really competitive and try not to lose first of all," said the Dons assistant manager.

"I think from when we played Bolton away, we were four points adrift, there has been a 17 point swing and that has given us the luxury of being able to go into these tough away fixtures without it being as crucial as it could have been.

"The players have worked so hard, put points on the board and put us in a position where that's a possibility now. It could have been the case where we desperately needed points to get out of the relegation battle. So it's an incredible swing. In my opinion, we've done it in style too, considering the league position we were in.

"We need to put in good performances at both of these games, we know it will be tough, the atmosphere will be different to Shrewsbury and Lincoln, but we're going there expecting good performances, and we're going there to win. But we've done so much hard work where these games are not as crucial as they could have been."