He's done it again: Portsmouth Wembley hero with remarkable penalty display against Arsenal

Out-of-favour Craig MacGillivray was handed his first MK Dons outing in 10 months for their Bristol Street Motors Trophy group-stage clash on Tuesday night.

Facing Arsenal’s kids, the fixture finished 2-2, with both the Dons’ goals scored by ex-Pompey striker Ellis Harrison, before attention turned to a shoot-out to allocate the bonus point.

As Blues fans will testify, MacGillivray boasts an outstanding record on penalties, having famously saved Lee Cattermole’s spot-kick in their 2019 Checkatrade Trophy triumph at Wembley.

The popular Blues keeper also once stopped three in a shoot-out against Stevenage during a first-round Carabao Cup match in August 2020, having been introduced at half-time for Alex Bass.

And, having been handed his first outing of the season by new Dons boss Scott Lindsey against Arsenal’s youngsters, remarkably he repeated his speciality.

MacGillivray brilliantly saved the Gunners’ opening three penalties from Michal Rosiak, Salah Oulad M'Hand and Harrison Dudziak, all on target, before finally being beaten by Maldini Kacurri.

It ensured the Dons won the shoot-out 3-1 in their Southern Group E clash in front of 2,427 supporters.

And MacGillivray told BBC Sport Three Counties the secret to his success.

He said: The gaffer obviously said to me yesterday (Monday) that I’m going to give you a game. You haven’t played football nearly as much as you want to, so just go out and enjoy it. I tried to enjoy it as best as I could.

‘More than anything, it was just a relief, mentally it has been tough, there’s no getting away from that, it was just nice to step on the football pitch again and do what you love, playing football.

‘Saving three pens is always a bonus. It’s interesting, usually before a game you obviously go through the pens, but there were no pens in them, it was purely a bit of guesswork.

‘Sometimes that can work to your advantage. Sometimes you can overanalyse penalties and ultimately have multiple different places they can put that ball.

‘You can sometimes get bogged down by if he has gone so many places in a row he might go there again - and sometimes like Arsenal when you just go off instinct, it can work in your favour.

‘It’s my joint-record, I half thought if I can get four it will top it, three I will take. The last penalty shoot-out I had I saved three.’

MacGillivray’s previous penalty shoot-out was for Pompey at Stevenage in August 2020.

Trailing 3-2 at the interval, he came off the bench to replace Bass and, with John Marquis levelling to make it 3-3, the match entered penalties.

MacGillivray saved three of Stevenage’s four spot-kicks as Pompey won 3-1 to reach the second round of the Carabao Cup.