The second meeting of last season’s Blue Square South and North champions ended with Tamworth fans celebrating finishing the season in the lower reaches of the table while Wimbledon supporters trudged out of Kingsmeadow dejected, despite their side still being in with a great chance of finishing sixth. Such is football.

However, the bare facts of the Dons’ fifth goalless defeat in the last six home games tells very little of the story. The home side, lacklustre in the first half, completely dominated the second but somehow contrived to put away none of their seemingly endless stream of chances. The first period was a far more even affair, with clear-cut goalscoring opportunities few and far between, the Dons’ midfield of Steven Gregory, Will Hendry, Ricky Wellard and Elliott Godfrey rarely gelling, and Tamworth’s tenacious Bradley Pritchard and Michael Briscoe bossing the centre of the pitch with some ease.

The one highlight in the early stages was the performance of 19-year-old right-back Ryan Jackson, who looked more than capable in defence, showed a fair turn of pace, was comfortable on the ball and combined some neat touches with a couple of excellent crosses that Tamworth keeper Danny Alcock had to be at his best to deal with. Jackson’s huge throw was also causing Tamworth problems, and the player, who came to his Blue Square Premier debut match by bus, was the one shining light in a rather dark half.

Nathan Elder should have given the Dons the lead on 20 minutes, but he shanked his shot from the edge of the area horribly wide. Brett Johnson then headed an inswinging Wellard corner over the bar from 10 yards before Tamworth punished those misses by taking the lead shortly after. Danny Kedwell, who had earlier picked up all four player of the year awards he was eligible for, was penalised for what looked like a fair challenge on the halfway line, and from Neil McKenzie’s free kick Iyseden Christie headed on for left-back Michael Wylde to control the ball and hammer it past debutant keeper Jack Turner from 10 yards.

Turner didn’t stand a chance with Wylde’s effort, but other than mishandling a deep cross into the area, the 17-year-old looked assured and confident. This is very encouraging for Wimbledon’s future, especially as Terry Brown has emphasised reliance on youth more than once of late - although how likely it is that he’ll approach the club’s second season in the Blue Square Premier with two teenage keepers is anyone’s guess.

The Dons, try as they might, couldn’t even come close to breaking down Tamworth’s resolute rearguard, but their real problems lay in midfield, where all four players were having a collective off day: weak in the tackle, careless in possession and slow of thought - a far cry from the home performances in those exciting months from November to March.

As games of two halves go, this was just about the perfect example. With Terry Brown attending another game, Stuart Cash and Simon Bassey made the unusually bold step of making two changes at half-time, with Luke Moore and Glen Poole replacing the out-of-sorts Elliott Godfrey and Will Hendry, and the substitutions had an immediate effect. Suddenly the Dons had some urgency about them, and it was clear that it wasn’t just the home fans who didn’t want to see another home defeat.

Wimbledon now camped around the Tamworth area for the next 45 minutes, and other than a brilliant one-handed save by Turner to deny the visitors an undeserved second on 55 minutes, Tamworth were put under immense pressure by a side determined to end what has been a great first season in the BSP on a high. Kedwell tested Alcock’s reflexes with a firm drive, Elder headed over and wide, Wellard’s shot stung the keeper’s hands, and Gregory’s header was turned away by Alcock as the Dons took it in turns to try to force an equaliser.

Their cause wasn’t helped when Elder, playing his final home game for Wimbledon before returning to Shrewsbury, fell awkwardly when challenging goalscorer Wylde near the halfway line and had to be stretchered off with a season-ending injury. The nimble Matt Harmsworth replaced him, and was soon giving the Tamworth defence something completely different to think about. However, his miss from under the bar after Gregory’s headed chance just about summed up the Dons’ luck on the night. There was still time for a Moore free kick to skim the bar, Kedwell to see his 12-yard effort blocked, and Paul Lorraine to comically fluff a simple-looking headed chance after yet another driving run by the excellent Jackson.

The Dons continued to pile on the pressure, but it was just wasn’t to be, and Tamworth left with the three points they needed to ensure their survival. The Dons could still finish sixth if they won at relegation-threatened Gateshead and Kettering failed to win at Salisbury - a final position that the vast majority of Dons fans would have settled for at the season’s outset. However, with a few of the night’s squad arguably playing their last games for AFC Wimbledon, it wasn’t quite the emotional goodbye that most were hoping for.