After taking over as AFC Wimbledon manager in the summer of 2022, Johnnie Jackson’s life hasn’t been all sunshine and rainbows.
At the end of the previous season, Jackson’s future with the team was in doubt due to a desperate run of play that had the Dons dangerously close to the drop zone. After Swindon Town crushed Plough Lane 5-1, cries of “We want Jackson out” echoed throughout Plough Lane.
Ten months later, Jackson was fully vocal and punching the air in front of an adoring South stand. The chants no longer demand that their boss be fired; instead, they are now serenading him.
The 2-0 triumph over Barrow, who are currently ranked third, completed a fantastic week for Jackson, who signed a new deal to continue leading Wimbledon alongside assistant manager Terry Skiverton.
After Barrow’s victory, Jackson told London Football Scene, “I was really pleased to get that sorted this week, but it wasn’t about me today, it was about us doing what we do well.”
Although his time as Dons manager hasn’t been easy, the former Charlton manager will be the first to acknowledge that his team has made tremendous progress this year and is vying for a spot in the League Two Play-Offs.
“The club has advanced significantly this season; it’s a far cry from last season,” Jackson remarked.
It truly is a team effort. Things are coming together quite nicely, and we’ve made progress. It’s obvious that we’ve come a long way, but we still haven’t done anything.
“The challenges of the previous season taught us so much. It doesn’t feel nice, therefore there’s no purpose going through it if you won’t learn anything from it.
It can be really beneficial if you can get through it and apply the lessons you learned, like we did.
“We gained a lot of knowledge about the league, ourselves, the players we want to add, and the kind of team we want to assemble.”
Jackson and Craig Cope, the head of football operations, launched an ambitious summer window campaign to rebuild a Wimbledon team that was in dire need of a change of direction.
Jackson has made a deliberate, astute recruitment strategy that fits the club’s character.
The additions of Josh Kelly and Ronan Curtis are already having a positive impact, and while the loss of star striker Ali Al-Hamadi in the January transfer window was undoubtedly disappointing, the additions of striker Omar Bugiel, midfielder and captain Jake Reeves, and goalkeeper Alex Bass on loan from Sunderland have proven essential.
“We sat down and discussed building a proper Wimbledon team on the first day of preseason, and it was huge for us,” Jackson continued.
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