Gillingham had a man sent off as their play-off challenge suffered a major blow at Wimbledon. Omar Bugiel had nodded the hosts in front before Masterson picked up two yellow cards in two minutes towards the end of the opening half.
Bugiel doubled the lead after the break to seal the points and a 2-0 win for the Dons. Conor Mahoney’s game-changing weekend display earned him a return to the starting XI for the Gills as Ashley Nadesan dropped to the bench.
Just a point and a place separated the teams ahead of the midweek match in the race for the play-offs. This was a crucial fixture with teams further below also within striking distance and with games in hand.
The second half against Tranmere had seen the Gills impress but it was back to a laboured first-half showing at Wimbledon. Head coach Stephen Clemence opted to stick with a 5-4-1 formation rather than a four-man defence that got them a weekend point.