Watching AFC Wimbledon squander a lead is nothing new but the chaotic 3-2 Easter Monday defeat to Salford City has to be the hardest to take.
Leading 2-1 in the 92nd minute, young goalkeeper Nathan Broome saved Callum Hendry’s penalty to send the Plough Lane faithful into raptures.
Three minutes later, Hendry wheeled off in celebration after scoring two goals in 90 seconds to condemn the Dons to yet another defeat from a winning position.
Boos from the home fans echoed over the full-time whistle with the defeat coming just two days after Wimbledon conceded two late goals at Harrogate Town – including a 97th minute equaliser.
It’s a frustrating trend that has carried over from their League One relegation with the Dons winning just 17 of a possible 48 games in which they have taken the lead, drawing 19 and losing 12 since the beginning of last season.
It’s a mind-boggling total of 74 points dropped from winning positions, the highest in the EFL in that time by 13 points.
The issue hasn’t got any better. Despite now playing in a lower division and with a different manager at the helm, the Dons dropped 35 points from winning positions and picked up just nine points from the last 10 games in which they’ve taken the lead.
Johnnie Jackson’s side have actually outscored opponents in the opening 60 minutes of games this season by a total of 10 goals (scoring 32 and conceding 22) but in the last 30 minutes it’s a different story, being outscored by 16 goals – scoring 13 but conceding 29.
So what exactly is behind a problem that has plagued the side for the best part of two seasons?
Describing the Salford defeat as the most painful of his career, Johnnie Jackson said: “It’s obviously a mentality thing, and it’s about taking responsibility on the pitch.
“We have to find it from within. Football, it’s a tough game. You have to go every four or five games. We have to find it from within to go again.”
Certainly the weak mentality feels like an after-effect from the pain of last year’s relegation and 27-game losing streak, a hangover the club have failed to shake off in League Two.
A slow start to the season under new boss Jackson meant the negative cloud looming over the club failed to lift and the nervous energy remained. Scars from last season haven’t healed, but instead serve as a stark reminder of a tough 2021/22 season.
The healing process started to take shape over the autumn and early winter period as improved form saw Wimbledon just two points off the Play-Offs at the turn of the year.
READ MORE: AFC Wimbledon’s League Two promotion hopes are over – what next for Johnnie Jackson’s side?
However, a difficult winter transfer window which included losing the team’s two best players, Ayoub Assal and Ryley Towler, set the team back significantly. Wimbledon quickly fell back into the rut they were working so hard to lift themselves out of.
A lack of leadership is another significant reason for the club’s struggles with Alex Woodyard bearing the brunt of fans’ ire while other senior players such as Alex Pearce and Will Nightingale have struggled with injury.
Meanwhile veteran defender Chris Gunter missed two games in March, during the team’s injury crisis, to join Wales’ coaching staff much to the dismay of fans and has not featured for the Dons since.
Jackson’s reasonable inexperience as a manager, the second youngest League Two boss behind Barrow’s Pete Wild, could also be part of the problem with fans questioning whether the blown leads would continue under a more experienced, older head.
It’s also hard not to see the number of injuries the club have faced throughout the season as another factor.
READ MORE: Intensity, commitment & belief in youth – what Johnnie Jackson brings to AFC Wimbledon
Looking at the Salford defeat, three of the back four that conceded late on were second choice players – Huseyin Biler, Pearce and Paul Kalambayi were all unavailable, and even back-up centre-back Aaron Pierre was forced off at half-time through injury.
The 38 players used by Jackson this season is the second highest in the league, while the squad is the third youngest with an average age of just 24.5 and, when considering both, it has made the task much harder to solve.
Despite the obvious frustration, it looks likely Jackson will remain in charge going into next season with his biggest task in the summer to eliminate the late-game capitulations which has haunted the club for the last two years.