Barry Fuller took little comfort from walking off with the man-of-the-match champagne on Saturday.

A decent personal performance meant nothing to him after being on the end of a 1-0 defeat.

He said: “My performance is irrelevant, we lost the game. I feel I did okay but it means nothing to me if we have lost.”

Fuller spoke to the press after emerging from a dressing room that had just been ringing to some stinging criticism from their manager Steve Lovell.

He was angry at the performance against Fuller’s old team.

“There were some harsh words,” said the 34-year-old.

“We knew it was coming, we knew the performance wasn’t good enough and that reflected the result. It was one of those days where nothing went for us.

“We knew it would be a battle, both teams hadn’t picked up points lately, they are big and physical, they are good at what they do and they made it tough for us. Maybe we got dragged into that as well.

“The dressing room was quiet, we were hurt, we don’t like to lose games and we have to roll our sleeves up and find a win from somewhere, even if it’s the ugliest 1-0 win off someone’s backside, I would take that.”

Fuller played more than 200 league games for the Dons over a five-year period, repeating the League 2 play-off success with them that he enjoyed at the Gills in 2009. He was making his first start at Priestfield since September 2011.

He said: “I got a great reception from both sets of fans. It is lovely to hear both cheering your name.

“Some of the boys were asking who was my best friend at Wimbledon and I said Andy Barcham, because he has been there a few years and a few at Gillingham. We spoke to each other on Friday night and were both ready to battle. We put the friendship aside for 90 minutes.

“I was really up for the game, I really wanted to come away with the three points, no matter how long you have been at a club, football is football.

“It is downhearting to lose a game. If you play well and lose it’s the same outcome. We have just got to think what we have to do to improve as a team and hopefully we can do that and put it into action next Saturday.

“We will come in Monday refreshed and hopefully put it behind us as much as we can, ready to work hard for the week.”

Fuller is two years older than the next senior player at the club, Gabriel Zakuani, but is showing no sign of slowing down.

He said: “I am enjoying being back and I want to help push the club forward. I work hard on the training pitch and I am willing to help the youngsters as well, if they want advice.

“As long as I am fit and healthy and feel I can do a job I am happy to keep going.”