Dons draw first blood against Magpies | OneFootball

Riley Harbottle handed AFC Wimbledon a narrow advantage in their League Two play-off semi-final against Notts County, scoring the only goal of a gripping encounter at Meadow Lane.

The centre-back broke the deadlock in the second half, heading home to give the Dons a valuable lead to defend in the return leg at Plough Lane.

Earlier in the match, Notts were left aggrieved when their penalty shout was dismissed after Conor Grant’s shot appeared to strike Joe Lewis. The first half also featured standout saves from both goalkeepers in an end-to-end contest.

Wimbledon’s Alex Bass made a superb stop to his left to deny Ryan Johnson, while Owen Goodman kept out a powerful strike from Grant shortly after.

Grant had another golden opportunity when he found himself unmarked in the box, but Goodman reacted brilliantly to make a sprawling save, and Harbottle cleared the rebound just as Alassana Jatta prepared to pounce.

Harbottle then made his mark at the other end by scoring the decisive goal. Notts County pushed hard for an equaliser—Jodi Jones struck the upright and Grant saw a late shot cleared off the line by Josh Neufville.

Their hopes took a final blow in stoppage time when Jatta was shown a straight red card for a reckless two-footed challenge on Alistair Smith.