BASINGSTOKE footballer Joe McDonnell looks set for a bright future in the professional game after impressing on his AFC Wimbledon debut.

It was something of a baptism of fire for the 20-year-old, who was thrown into the action in the early stages of Saturday’s trip to League Two leaders Shrewsbury Town.

McDonnell, who has been Wimbledon’s substitute goalkeeper for much of the season, got his chance when James Shea suffered a broken nose with just 15 minutes on the clock.

He was unable to prevent the visitors losing 2-0, but had little chance of stopping either goal and made an excellent save to deny James Collins in the closing stages.

Talking about his big day, McDonnell said: “It was a great feeling to make my debut and while I was nervous, I took a couple of crosses and started to feel a bit more confident.

“I only really had one save to make, it was more about organising the defence and coming for crosses. It was disappointing to lose but Shrewsbury are a really good team and I felt that I did well personally.”

The former Cranbourne Business and Enterprise College pupil added: “I am really enjoying it at Wimbledon. The manager has shown a lot of faith in young players and it’s great to be part of it.

“I thought that I would be mainly playing for the under-21s this season, so to get a game is way beyond what I was expecting.”

McDonnell clearly impressed Wimbledon boss Neal Ardley on his senior debut.

“It’s difficult to come on away from home against the league leaders, but I could not fault Joe,” the Dons manager said. “He was good at his talking and came well for crosses. I’m really pleased for him because he works really hard on the training pitch.”

By making his debut for Wimbledon, McDonnell became the first product of Basingstoke Town’s relatively new full-time, in-house academy system to play in the Football League.

Town manager Jason Bristow said: “We have all been following Joe’s progress with real interest. We are all delighted for him and hope there are more appearances to come.

“To make his first appearance is a massive milestone for him and something for Basingstoke Town as a whole to be really proud of.”

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