When MK Dons boss Roberto Di Matteo came to visit Bracknell Town

Bracknell Town's Chris Geary challenges an MK Dons player in the County Cup. Photo: Get Reading.
Bracknell Town's Chris Geary challenges an MK Dons player in the County Cup. Photo: Get Reading.

Roberto Di Matteo’s dismissal last week by Chelsea will jog a lot of memories for the older Larges Lane faithful, who witnessed the former West Brom boss attend a tie between his then side Milton Keynes Dons side and the Robins in a Berks & Bucks Senior County Cup tie.

From Duds match report on the night – “With Dons first-team manager Roberto Di Matteo in the dugout, the Dons put in a good performance, but they could not find a way past the resilient Robins side who were fortunate to have goalkeeper Max Aneke in superlative form.”

Michael Buck points to the sky after scoring the only goal for Bracknell Town against MK Dons in the County Cup. Photo: Get Reading.
Michael Buck points to the sky after scoring the only goal for Bracknell Town against MK Dons in the County Cup. Photo: Get Reading.

Several things are striking about this game back in 2008:

The first being that Di Matteo was not expected to be in attendance, it was largely a Reserve side fielded, but when he did arrive, there were very few airs and graces, and he seemed a genuinely decent chap.

The second, is the now famous story of the Champions League winner’s head meeting the top of the dugout. Dudley will undoubtedly explain it better, but on taking his place in the away dugout for the second period, Di Matteo turned and promptly whacked his head on the low roof.

The third and final being that this was a rare win and somewhat of an upset for the Robins – who won 1-0 courtesy of a Michael Buck strike (seen below) – as Bracknell struggled against relegation for much of the season following their dismissal from the FA Cup for fielding an inneligable player.

Bracknell went on to play Maidenhead United in the next round but were beaten 2-1 at Larges Lane.

If you have any memories of the night, then do let us know!

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