Watford earned their second successive league win and moved up to fifth in Division One with a 3-1 win over Wimbledon.

Graham Taylor's side had lost seven of their eight games prior to beating Barnsley last Friday, but a brace from Tommy Mooney plus one from Gifton Noel-Williams gave them victory after an early scare.

Wimbledon took an 11th-minute lead when Marcus Gayle scored with a stunning angled strike to beat Alec Chamberlain at the near post.

It was a swift counter-attack that left Gayle in acres of space and he shot unchallenged from 25 yards.

But the Dons' joy was short-lived and within a minute Watford were back on terms.

A Neil Cox corner was half-cleared as far as Darren Ward, who nodded the ball back in.

Noel-Williams got his head to the ball to deflect it into the path of Mooney who promptly nodded it into the corner.

Eight minutes later Mooney found the back of the net again with another header to give Watford the lead.

Cox provided the cross and Mooney rose in the centre to head the ball beyond Kelvin Davis.

The exchanges became somewhat scrappy, with Wimbledon launching the ball into the Watford penalty area, but the home side proved successful with some tidy exchanges.

The nearest Wimbledon came to equalising was when Andy Roberts, who had had an earlier shot charged down, fired the ball just wide of the post, but it was no more than a half-chance.

Watford increased their lead after 35 minutes. Allan Nielsen won a challenge on the edge of the box and the ball bounced towards Noel-Williams.

He won a block tackle, powered through and sold a dummy to the keeper before slotting the ball into the corner of the net.

Wimbledon came out determined after the break but Watford were equally resolute in a scrappy start to the second half.

Jason Euell had a chance when he was allowed to bring the ball down from a free-kick, turn and fire goalwards but keeper Chamberlain was right behind it and pulled the effort down.

Noel-Williams finished off a right-wing move for Watford with a shot that was deflected over for a corner and the striker looked likely to add his second when he ran onto a pass from Peter Kennedy, but Davis just beat him to the ball.

Watford's Paul Robinson received his 10th booking of the season but he was soon back in the thick of the action in a breakaway raid, crossing for Noel-Williams to force Davis to make a good save to an awkward shot.

Noel-Williams tested Davis again in the 75th minute with a shot from 20 yards after collecting the ball from a Kennedy cross.

Wimbledon knew there was not much time left to launch a comeback and Gayle's shot at the other end was saved by Chamberlain.

The Hornets missed one final chance to add to their lead when Noel-Williams again let fly with a shot, but this time his effort was off-target.

Teams

Watford: Chamberlain, Cox, Page, Ward, Robinson, Smith, Nielsen, Carlton Palmer, Kennedy, Mooney, Noel-Williams.

Subs Not Used: Steve Palmer, Wooter, Helguson, Baardsen, Vernazza.

Booked: Robinson.

Goals: Mooney 12, 20, Noel-Williams 36.

Wimbledon: Davis, Williams, Roberts (Agyemang 45), Holloway, Ardley, Andersen, Francis, Gier, Hawkins, Euell, Gayle.

Subs Not Used: Kimble, Heald, Willmott, Hunt.

Booked: Davis, Holloway.

Goals: Gayle 11.

Att: 11,336

Ref: D Laws (Whitley Bay).