Dean Lewington: MK Dons skipper lifted by wins after injury lay-off

Dean Lewington has been an MK Dons player since they came into existence in 2004

MK Dons defender Dean Lewington is delighted to be back out on the pitch following the longest injury lay-off of his nearly 20-year career.

Lewington, 38, played in the last two games - both 1-0 wins - after surgery on a hamstring injury in December.

The victories lifted the Dons out of the bottom four, but they remain in a fight to avoid relegation.

"It was a battle against myself really to see how quick I could get back," he told BBC Three Counties Radio.

"When you're injured, you play these mental games with yourself and that was my focus, which helped me get back significantly quicker than I ought to have."

Lewington had a brief spell as caretaker boss following the sacking of Liam Manning - now in charge at Oxford United - before Mark Jackson was brought in as head coach.

And he admitted that as club captain he found it difficult to be critical of team-mates from the dugout.

He said: "Everything is different when you're out on the pitch. I felt I couldn't criticise too much because I wasn't out there.

"It was really hard, so it's nice to be back. Even in training, you can start snapping at people and pushing them in the right direction because you're in amongst it.

"It's a lot easier to lead in the camp than it is on the sidelines."

A meeting to clear the air followed a 1-0 defeat at Port Vale on 4 March, with the Dons subsequently coming out on top by the same scoreline in a home game against Cambridge United and then away at Accrington.

Lewington said the Dons were still in a "precarious position" - just one point above the drop zone ahead of Saturday's meeting with another team in trouble, Morecambe, at Stadium MK.

But he continued: "The table obviously looks a lot better than it did two weeks ago. In terms of confidence and how we feel about ourselves, it's helped massively as well.

"They were two tight games and we're happy to have come out on the right side in both. It's breathed a bit of life back into the campaign.

"Wins are the lifeblood for football players - the confidence starts coming back, people start wanting the ball more and are prepared to run at people. All those kind of things happen when you've got a couple of wins under your belt."