What ever happened to Dons goalkeeper Cody Cropper?

MK Dons' single season in the Championship was a tough one for everyone involved, and keeper Cody Cropper had a front-row seat.

The American shot-stopper was brought in as a replacement for Ian McLaughlin as the number two to David Martin between the posts.

Moving to England in 2010 with Ipswich Town where he made the first-team bench once, he moved to Southampton in 2012 where once more he was the back-up keeper, never making a full appearance for the club before his release in 2015.

Arriving at Stadium MK, Cropper made his debut in a 2-1 win over Leyton Orient in the League Cup and returned for the second-round win over Cardiff City. Cropper was a regular fixture in Dons' community activities though, and stated his desire to take the number one spot while feeding the residents of the YMCA in Central Milton Keynes.

On the field, Cropper needed to wait until January for his next appearance - the 2-2 draw with Northampton in the FA Cup at Sixfields - but he would get his shot at the first team when Martin broke his hand in training, ruling him out for the rest of the season.

While Cropper's arrival also coincided with Dons' capitulation in the Championship, the defence failed to keep a single clean sheet with him between the posts during his nine appearances in the league. His campaign went from bad to worse when he was sent off late in the day against Preston North End, giving away a penalty with the game poised at 1-1. Dons had made their substitutions by that stage too, leaving striker Alex Revell to face the penalty from Joe Garner, making a remarkable save to earn Dons a point.

Cropper returned from his suspension against Brentford two weeks later, but was substituted at half time and replaced for the rest of the season by Charlie Burns. Cropper was released at the end of the season, but he quickly arranged a move back to America, signing for New England Revolution in the MLS. Racking up 28 appearances in 2017, but slipped to head coach and former Premier League keeper Brad Friedl's third choice for the following season.

After a loan spell at Hartford Athletic in the USL Championship, Cropper was released by Revolution in November 2019, before signing for Houston Dynamo in January.