My Football Club

[Snake]

we tonked Burton!

And since then They have won 10 league games in a row.

Ooh, this enthusiasm could become infectious…

[recordmeister]

Not the best peformance of the season as that Ebbsfleet back 4 must be the slowest unit in the pro game. I thought we'd win after witnessing the Hawkins/Smith centreback pairing in April's away game. They are woeful.

Good finishing yesterday any road and was interested by the tactics in first 25 minutes where Haldane seemed to be playing in the hole with Trainer and Yemi left and right.

This is the worst set of 24 teams in the Div 5 since we came down and should be our best chance of getting up. (I mean, we tonked Burton!)

But we are frankly too far behind already, thanks , inexcusably to a lack of fighting spirit away from home. You would never blame Clarkie for a lack of fighting spirit. More power to his elbow, (maybe the wrong phrase but you know what I mean), another good performance from him yesterday. And from Hutchinson!

And next season will be the toughest with poss AFC W, Luton and Bournmouth in this division.

Hard core. You know the score.

[Pe├▒a Oxford United]

a lack of fighting spirit away from home

Well, whatever it is away from home.... we have nine points from thirteen away games. I can se no record worse than ours outside the relegation zone. I calculate that in this division teams playing away have accumulated 329 points from 276 games, which suggests that if we had so much as an average away record we would have six or seven points more than we do.

Have a look at the goal differences, though - even after Ebbsfleet. Look at the records in the play-off zone and then look at ours.

[ty cobb]

Whilst it was a good win they were rubbish – even their supposed best player (goalie) had an awful game. However, we’ve played many awful teams before gone a goal up only to sit back and let them back in it – bar a period after our second goal and 15 minutes into the second half we kept on pushing.

I don’t think Clark should tone down the nasty side of his game – was he booked on Sunday – no but he did sufficiently annoy their winger to make him more intent on trying to kick Clark then run past him – there was only going to be one winner in the kicking stakes! To often we’ve been a walkover against harder teams I would like a couple more James Clarkes in the team.

Hutch is also now getting stuck in, it maybe because his contract is up for renewal now but it also could be that the manger hasn’t publicly slagged him off for keeping his side of the bargain. I thought his getting stuck in (and over shadowing Jamie Hand who was subbed) allowed Murray the freedom to have one of his better games for us.

Furthermore, the defence looked solid (apart from Turley watching the ball sail past him AGAIN in the side of the goal he should be protecting) Trainer had a better game and Fisher’s touch and finish were a class above anything that Guy has done all season.

The formation was interesting and playing Haldane in the hole worked very well although I felt Yemi was too far wide in the first half which meant he couldn’t get behind their Chris Whyte style centre backs. I feel a bit sorry for Haldane – he’s been played all over the place since joining us, mostly gets subbed when he does start but Sunday showed that with a bit of patience he is a very good player at this level.

This division is really here for the taking, a win on New Years Day (and the players will be well up for that one) should mean another good following down to Eastbourne which is another very winnable game.

Also re LSD – absolutely terrible thing to happen to him no doubt about that, and I was gutted when I heard the news but long term could it be for the benefit of OUFC? If the talk of him going to Derby (although less likely now Jewell has gone) was true then we’d have got very little for him in Jan, I’d rather he came back fresh for the new season playing for Oxford United then playing well for another team. A year older will mean that if we do end up selling him we’d get more money and get to enjoy his talents for a bit longer.

[Pe├▒a Oxford United]

This division is really here for the taking

Ho ho ho, as Santa would have it

[Baboo]

This division is really here for the taking

Burton have already taken it ?

[Mally]

Talking of Clarke ... I saw this and thought of him!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/7802865.stm

&quotPratt sets 'record' for red card &quot but what was the player's name?

[amershamwrighty]

apart from Turley watching the ball sail past him AGAIN in the side of the goal he should be protecting

Good point - I was thinking about that on the way home : how many times has that happened ? Mansfield, Burton, Ebbsfleet, Cambridge, Rushden ? I can just about understand being poor at set pieces, but not at the same set piece several times.

[ty cobb]

This division is really here for the taking

Burton have already taken it ?

Not if Clough goes to Forest or Derby and takes some players with him in Jan.

We should manage a good run into the play offs though - we should be able to win the next 4 league games (3 of which are at home) which should put us within touching distance of the play offs.

Together with a couple of new players in Jan from someone who really knows the division should enable us to really push on (you watch we'll go and lose our next 4 games now - at which point I think I'll give up)

Even being adrift of the play offs I think we stand a much better chance of going up this season then next, if we get in the play offs this season we'll go up as we'll be the form team given the run we'll have had to go on.

[Matt D]

perhaps if the conference abolish away games for oxford, and insist that all games are played at minchery to accommodate the hordes of supporters turning out to see this magnificent play-off charge...

[boris]

we should be able to win the next 4 league games (3 of which are at home)

I take it you've not been an Oxford supporter for very long, Ty?

[SmileyMan]

Oxford win games which meet any of the following criteria:

1) It is mathematically impossible for them to be promoted or relegated. This always prompts a surge in form, especially amongst individual underperforming players.

2) We are playing the league leaders. This is presumably because &quotwe're too good for this league&quot and thus the current leaders are the only people we do not have to compromise our natural Premiership-style game to play.

3) We have lost four games on the trot. Guaranteed to bring out a thumping defeat of a good side, in order to satisfy the OUFC supporter's need for a regular &quotturning point&quot fix.

In the absence of the above, against sides in the bottom four we will lose, despite playing well. All other games will consist of a well-worked early goal, followed by a disappointing equaliser late in the second half.

[ty cobb]

we should be able to win the next 4 league games (3 of which are at home)

I take it you've not been an Oxford supporter for very long, Ty?

Since 1987 which means I perhaps more then many on this forum know the sense of how disapointing it is to be a Oxford fan with very little reward - at least you lot had the 80's to remember, I have a couple of seasons in the 90's which apart from that it's been awful.

Anyway we've won 5 out of the last 6 at home (including Burton) and all the games are against teams below us (well Alty are only one place above us) so why shouldn't we win all 4?

If I didn't think we could beat the like of FGR and Eastbourne I may as well give up as that would just be to depressing. We've only lost 1 of the last 6 games, we're on a decent run of form at the moment (we've just won 5-1 for godness sake!) so why not be optimistic?

[Pe├▒a Oxford United]

When will they ever learn?
When will they ev-er learn?

[ty cobb]

Oxford win games which meet any of the following criteria:

1) It is mathematically impossible for them to be promoted or relegated. This always prompts a surge in form, especially amongst individual underperforming players.

2) We are playing the league leaders. This is presumably because &quotwe're too good for this league&quot and thus the current leaders are the only people we do not have to compromise our natural Premiership-style game to play.

3) We have lost four games on the trot. Guaranteed to bring out a thumping defeat of a good side, in order to satisfy the OUFC supporter's need for a regular &quotturning point&quot fix.

In the absence of the above, against sides in the bottom four we will lose, despite playing well. All other games will consist of a well-worked early goal, followed by a disappointing equaliser late in the second half.

Hmmmmm, so which does Sundays game fall into?