AFC Wimbledon have only been beaten in three of their first ten league fixtures but a spate of draws mean Neal Ardley’s men are in 16th place ahead of Saturday’s visit from Barnet.

The Dons have drawn four of their League Two fixtures this term and thanks to those stalemates they are unbeaten in seven consecutive league games.

However, after successive 20th-place finishes under Ardley – who spent 11 years as a player at the original club before moving to Watford in 2002 – the south London side improved to take 15th last term and will be looking for similar growth again this term.

Formed in 2002 as a response to the decision by an independent commission to allow the original Dons to move 56 miles north to Milton Keynes, AFC Wimbledon are the only club founded in the 21st Century to be playing in the Football League.

Their rise is as remarkable as it was rapid.

Five promotions in nine seasons saw the phoenix side soar from the Combined Counties League Premier – the ninth tier of English football – to reach Football League Two in 2011 after beating Luton Town in the Conference Play-Off Final.

Now in their fifth season in the Football League the Dons have plateaued somewhat but considering how quickly the club has grown, that is far from a crime.

And whilst the Dons evolve on the field they continue to build for the future off it with a deal to sell their Kingsmeadow ground to Premier League giants Chelsea in the offing.

It is expected the Dons will move out of the ground, also the home of Isthmian Premier Division side Kingstonian, as they seek to return to their historical home of Merton.

At present they are in the process of trying to secure planning permission for an 11,000 capacity stadium at Plough Lane – the site of their former home until May 4, 1991.

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On the field experienced forward Adebayo Akinfenwa, 33, is one of the most recognisable faces in League Two and something of a throwback.

Nicknamed ‘The Beast’ due to his 16-stone frame, the Islington-born striker can reportedly bench press 200kg and runs his own clothing label, Beast Mode On, a nod to his physical size.

But there is more to the former Northampton Town and Gillingham forward than his size alonw. Akinfenwa scores goals and has hit double figures in the league for each of the last seven seasons.

Having been released as a youth by Watford in in 2001, he spent time in Lithuania and Wales before returning to English football with Boston United in 2003. Short spells with Leyton Orient, Rushden & Diamonds and Doncaster Rovers followed before Akinfenwa finally hit his stride at Torquay United in 2004.

A return of 14 goals from 28 league starts caught the interest of Swansea City and from there the hulking forward went on to spend two separate spells with both the Gills and the Cobblers before joining Wimbledon last summer.

Fourteen goals from 43 league starts provided a good return for the rotund forward, who had three in his first nine this season.

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At the back, captain Barry Fuller will be familiar to Bees supporters for a 41-game stay during the 2012/13 season as Barnet slipped out of the Football League, as well as a loan spell earlier in his career.

The right-sided full-back joined the Dons in 2013 and has since gone on to make exactly 100 league starts for the south Londoners after turning out for Stevenage and Gillingham earlier in his career.

A League Two Play-Off Final winner with the Gills in 2009, he moved to Underhill from the Kent club along with Curtis Weston in 2012 but was one of 12 players released by Edgar Davids after the Bees slipped out of the 72.

He also won the FA Trophy during his time at Stevenage and won a solitary England ‘C’ cap in 2007 whilst playing his club football at Broadhall Way.

AFC Wimbledon XI v Northampton Town (26.9.15): Shea; Fuller, Robinson, Ajayi, Meades; Francomb, Reeves, Bulman, Barcham; Akinfenwa, Azeez.