Milton Keynes Dons ended pre-season with a 3-1 loss to Northampton Town at Stadium MK.
The match began fairly evenly between the two sides, with both getting the ball into each other's halves.
The first real event of the match came in the fourth minute when Darragh Burns' quick run was impeded and he earned his side a free kick around 35 yards out.
In the ensuing play, Burns received a lofted pass from MJ Williams and chipped goalkeeper Lee Burge, seeing the ball hit the back of the net. Unfortunately, the linesman had his flag raised for offside and the score remained at 0-0.
The visitors took their chance when it fell to them, seeing Akin Odimayo's shot blocked in the area land at the feet of Mitch Pinnock, with his return volley inside the box hitting the roof of the net.
Northampton were unlucky not to extend their lead in the 19th minute when Pinnock let fly another shot from the edge of the box, seeing the ball sail through the penalty area and strike the far post and away from danger much to the Dons' relief.
The Dons were lucky again when a wayward pass slipped into the visitors' possession again, with an awkward scramble eventually seeing the home side clear the danger.
With things not going their way, the Dons opted to make a tactical change early by bringing on Ethan Robson for Brooklyn Ilunga, switching to a 4-3-3 structure after opening the game in a 5-2-3 formation.
With the change of formation came some promising moments for the Dons, with Joel Anker lifting a curled shot over the bar and Cameron Norman sending a low-hit shot from the corner of the penalty area wide as the home side looked to pull one back before the half.
The second half saw the visitors continue to play confidently, getting a shot away early on but seeing it go wide.
The Dons then began to build some momentum, going forward with regularity and purpose, with Jonathan Leko getting a shot away after five minutes of play, seeing his effort go wide.
Alex Gilbey then had a chance of his own moments later, but it was blocked inside the box and deflected out for a corner.
After making another couple of changes, with Mo Eisa and Nathan Holland replacing Burns and Leko, the Dons won a corner through Alex Gilbey's effort.
The Dons then capitalised on the corner, with Anker sending a clean ball deep into the box and seeing Warren O'Hora connect perfectly, sending the ball into the back of the net and bringing things level at 1-1.
Graham Alexander's side had another threatening opportunity in the 66th minute, as Gilbey was pulled down just outside the visitors' penalty area, earning a free kick.
With Eisa also standing over it, Danny Harvie took and saw his effort hit the defensive wall, keeping things tied. A free-flowing passage of play moments later almost saw Anker give the Dons the lead, with Harvie's short cross inside the box being blocked as he headed the ball close to the goal line.
Northampton took the lead with just four minutes remaining, with Peter Abimbola cutting onto his left foot and sending a shot into the far top corner, with MacGillivray unable to get close to it.
The visitors piled on the misery for the Dons two minutes later with another lofted effort from Ben Fox hitting the back of the net, extending the scoreline to 3-1 to Northampton.
There was no way back into the game for the Dons, who suffered yet another defeat during pre-season, ending their 2023-24 preparations without a win and a tough test ahead of them as they travel to Wrexham for their opening day clash with the National League champions.
MK Dons Line-Up: MacGillivray, Norman, O'Hora, Tucker, Ilunga (24' Robson), Harvie, Williams, Gilbey, Anker (76' Dean), Burns (58' Eisa), Leko (58' Holland)
