MARCUS GAYLE notched up another Wimbledon milestone at Selhurst Park last night, gunning down Coca-Cola Cup holders Aston Villa to put Joe Kinnear's side into the quarter-finals for only the second time in their history.

And Villa's misery was completed when England defender Gareth Southgate was stretchered away in the 82nd minute with what looked a serious knee injury. Nobody in south London is getting very excited by the Dons' 16-match unbeaten run, for a large number of Midlanders were among the paltry 7,573 crowd.

But at this rate Wembley as well as Europe beckons for the Dons, who owed their success to the sheer willingness of Gayle and the poor finishing of League Cup specialists Villa. who have won the competition twice in the last three seasons.

Ugo Ehiogu hooked a great chance over the bar from eight yards and Mark Draper, badly off-colour, finished just as badly soon after.

Villa poured forward after the break but were largely reduced to long range efforts which peppered the goal without hitting the target. Southgate had the best, a thumping effort into the midriff of the goalkeeper, before he was carried off after a crunching late challenge by substitute Mick Harford.

But though Villa dominated, they made enough mistakes for Wimbledon to have won even more easily.