Performances fade after staving off drop

NOWHERE TO HIDE: Athletic striker Pawel Abbott can’t bear to look after Yeovil stretch their lead at Huish Park.

ATHLETIC will need to buck the recent trend if they are to secure a win at Wimbledon with the club's status in Sky Bet League One assured for another season.

Only ONCE in the last seven seasons have the club managed to take three points from the game that immediately followed the relief of beating the drop.

That was back in the 2010-11 campaign. Athletic, managed by Paul Dickov, staved off any lingering fears over the drop with a 1-1 home draw against Walsall, in which Jason Lowe scored a terrific equaliser in the 88th minute.

Dickov's side managed to follow that up with a 2-0 victory at Swindon, with a side containing James Tarkowski and double-scorer Chris Taylor.

The seven-year sequence begins with the campaign of goal famine and struggle under Dave Penney in 2009-10, when a 2-2 draw at home to Southend - Danny Whitaker and Paul Black scored - was followed up by a crushing 3-0 loss at Yeovil, when the players travelled down to Huish Park on the day of the game.

After finishing 10th the previous season, when John Sheridan was replaced by Joe Royle in March, the sequence of League One finishing positions reads: 16th, 17th, 16th, 19th, 15th, 15th, 17th.

And the record of struggle after securing safety from relegation is arguably understandable, given the mental strain that is put on players fighting against the peril of the drop.

Manager Sheridan will have his work cut out to fire up this season's team at Kingsmeadow, after Peter Clarke's header finished the essential job in last week's home draw with Rochdale.

As he has proved time and again over the past two seasons, though, you write off a Sheridan-led Athletic side at your peril.

Athletic's post-safety results -

2015-16: Millwall 3, Athletic 0

2014-15: Walsall 2, Athletic 0

2013-14: Athletic 1, Sheffield Utd 1

2012-13: Shrewsbury 1, Athletic 0

2011-12: Bury 0, Athletic 0

2010-11: Swindon 0, Athletic 2

2009-10: Yeovil 3, Athletic 0