Oxford returned to the top
of the table in spectacular fashion with a reassuring 3-1 win at
Mansfield. James Constable took all the headlines with his 100th
goal for the club, coming just moments after Lee Stevenson had
cancelled out Sean Rigg's opener. Ryan Williams added a third before
the end and with bottom-of-the-table Northampton surprisingly beating
Fleetwood, the yellows now sit proudly top of the pile once again.
Oxford returned to the top
of the league with a fine 2-0 win over AFC Wimbledon. James Constable
put the yellows ahead after just six minutes when he met Asa Hall's
ball into the box to score his 99th goal for the club.
United were denied two stonewall penalties with the game still
hanging in the balance, but when Deane Smalley was upended in the
81st minute Oxford were finally given the decision they
had been craving. Smalley finished to seal the points and with other
results going our way Oxford sit proudly atop the League Two table.
You wait eight months for
a 0-0 draw and then two come along at once! Saturday's draw withAccrington was our first goalless draw since February and there was a
repeat of the same scoreline just three days later as Exeter came to
the Kassam. Oxford saw more of the ball but were unable to find a way
through and had to settle for a draw. On the positive side, having
struggled to keep the goals out earlier in the season, this result
now makes it three clean sheets in a row.
Oxford were frustratingly
held to a goalless draw against League Two's bottom side Accrington
Stanley. United were poor in the first half but created a host of
chances without finding the net in the second. As a result, United
drop out of the top three but due to results elsewhere are now just a
point off top spot.
Two goals in two minutes at the end of
the first half helped Oxford to their first home win since August,
with James Constable instrumental in both. First he charged through
on goal to finish off a wonderful team move and then he earned a
penalty, which was dispatched by Danny Rose. United looked
comfortable throughout and move onto next week's trip to basement
side Accrington full of confidence.
Oxford's JPT campaign is
over for another year as they fell at the first hurdle at home to
Portsmouth. The yellows dominated for large portions of the net but
were unable to put the ball in the net and were undone by second-half
goals from Patrick Agyemang and John Marquis. It extends the home
losing streak to three matches ahead of the visit of Northampton on
Saturday, but on a positive note youngsters Josh Ruffels and Callum
O'Dowda each got 90 minutes and Scott Davies also impressed.
The curse of the Kassam
continued as Oxford lost a second successive home game, going down
2-0 to Southend. Conor Clifford and Luke Prosser each found the net
in the first half during what was a particularly poor showing for the
first half. The result and performance caused a ripple of concern
throughout the fanbase as United drop out of the top three. But don't
take it from me, here's the match in tweets...
Oxford continued their
fantastic away form, making it 13 points from a possible 15 with a
3-1 win away at Hartlepool. Ryan Williams struck after just five
minutes to give the yellows the lead but Pools hit back just after
half-time through Luke James. But United stayed strong and retook the
lead midway through the second half when Deane Smalley drilled into
the right-hand corner of the net and they tied it up shortly before
the end from the penalty spot after Scott Davies was felled by the
goalkeeper.
Oxford fell to their first
defeat of the season in controversial circumstances at home to
Chesterfield. The league leaders scored in a topsy-turvy first half
when Ritchie Humphries side-footed in a cross from Eoin Doyle. Oxford
were still well and truly in the match, however, until referee Trevor
Kettle stepped up to centre stage by sending off Andy Whing. Despite
being down to ten men United kept pushing, but the task was just too
much in the end.
Dave Kitson scored his first goal in an
Oxford shirt as United drew at Cheltenham Town. James Constable and
Jake Wright were both ruled out due to injury and the yellows fell
behind early on before Kitson struck to equalise before the break.
Some lax defending shortly after half-time allowed Cheltenham to
retake the lead but Johnny Mullins struck again to earn the yellows a
point.
Oxford continued their excellent start to the season with an impressive victory away at previously unbeaten Burton Albion. The Brewers had Ian Sharps sent off in the first half and United made them pay in the second. Alfie Potter opened the scoring with a fantastic individual goal, weaving his way past several defenders before firing in. Danny Rose killed the game off shortly before the end, turning it in at the near post after Ryan Williams had dazzled on the wing and delivered a killer ball in.
Oxford were knocked off top spot after
being held to a draw for the second consecutive home match. The
yellows took the lead in the first half through James Constable but
were pegged back by a Matt Lund goal at the start of the second half
and were unable to snatch a winner. Elsewhere, late goals for
Chesterfield at Portsmouth saw them replace Oxford at the summit of
League Two.
It took a last-gasp equaliser from
Johnny Mullins to preserve Oxford's unbeaten start to the season.
United looked distinctly average against a spirited Wycombe side and
fell behind just before half-time when former U Dean Morgan slipped
free of his marker and fired home. The match kicked into life in the
second half as Wycombe's Charles Dunne was dismissed for a vicious
elbow to Alfie Potter and Danny Rose levelled the scores with the
free-kick. Morgan added his second for a penalty and all looked lost
when Mullins blasted the equaliser in the 96th minute.
Table-toppers Oxford kept their 100%
record intact with a 3-1 win in the wind and rain at Torquay. Deane
Smalley opened the scoring just after half-time with his third of the
season, while James Constable and Asa Hall rounded it off for United.
There was some concerning news on the injury front, however, with
Dave Kitson not recovering from last week's knock in time to feature
and both Alfie Potter and Sean Rigg going off injured early in this
match.
Oxford got their home
campaign off to a winning start with a 2-1 win over Bury to go top of
the formative League Two table. Danny Rose's excellent free-kick was
cancelled out by Bury's Tom Soares, but Johnny Mullins struck to win
it for the yellows. The visitors finished the game with ten men after
Nathan Cameron received a second yellow for dissent. United we stand!
Oxford crashed out of the League Cup
with a miserable 4-0 defeat against Championship side Charlton. The
scoreline was harsh on United, but Charlton were certainly the
superior side. They took the lead after 18 minutes through Simon
Church and added a further three goals after the break following a
decidedly limp second-half performance from the yellows.
Well we said before the
game that Oxford would be starting the season in style, but no one
could have predicted this! On a sun-soaked south coast afternoon
2,500 travelling Oxford fans saw their side demolish title favourites
Portsmouth 4-1 away from home. Two goals apiece from Alfie Potter and
Deane Smalley did the damage to get the season underway in perfect
fashion, with United joint top of the league!
Oxford ended their pre-season campaign on a positive note with a 1-0 win at the Kassam Stadium over League One Coventry City. Though the match was very much a friendly in nature, lacking the intensity of the real thing, it's always good to start the season with the winning habit and they're certainly going to need a running start with a sold-out trip to Portsmouth awaiting next weekend.