AFC Wimbledon defender Joe Lewis is close to a return – as Johnnie Jackson said the Dons wouldn’t be rushing Jake Reeves back into action.
Lewis has been out since going off in the 55th minute of the 1-0 defeat at Salford on October 5.
Jackson was boosted by the return of another defender, Ryan Johnson, in the 4-0 win over Carlisle United last weekend.
“Joe is getting really close,” Jackson said on the Dons’ website ahead of Saturday’s trip to Notts County. “Actually, he’s looking really good and strong, after that bad tackle on him at Salford.
“I thought we might miss him for a really substantial period of time, after he came off feeling really sore. He responded well though. He won’t be available for [County], but we’ll look at the Morecambe game. Whether that comes around too soon though, I’m not sure, but certainly by next weekend [at Port Vale] we expect to have Joe back with us.”
Jackson added: “We have to go to Notts County to try and win the game, hether that’s Johno from the start or to come on and see us through, it won’t be about managing his minutes. The eyes on the prize is about going and getting three points.
“It was good to bring him on last week, because we were comfortable in the game that we could get him on and give Ogs [Isaac Ogundere] a rest. It wasn’t a tactical substitution. It was purely to get Johno some minutes.
“Perhaps we could have done it earlier, but Ogs was feeling fine. We’ll look at Johno’s situation, but he’s fit and available for selection and has a huge role to play.
Reeves missed the win over Carlisle.
Jackson added: “Reevesy won’t be available. He’s probably a week or two away, but I don’t want to put too much pressure on him. Perhaps I did that by bringing him back for the Salford game, as he came from training that week feeling good.
“He’s our captain and our catalyst, so we rolled the dice with him, but he probably aggravated that ankle injury in the Salford match. We have to learn a lesson from that and not rush him back this time, because we want him fit and firing for the rest of the season.”
Meanwhile, Will Nightingale, who is on loan at Scottish Premiership Ross County, is back with Wimbledon for treatment on a knee injury that could keep him out for ten weeks.
