The Verdict - United 1 Plymouth 0

Oxford United closed the gap on the leaders with a 1-0 win over Plymouth Argyle last night at the Ksassam Stadium.

A Liam Sercombe goal made it five wins from six games for the U’s, and Michael Appleton agreed afterwards that it was among the best performances of the season.

“I think it’s up there, with Plymouth being top of the league and in good form over the last few games” he told Yellow Player HD. “It was important that we took something out of the game, especially after conceding so late at Orient on Saturday.

“When we hit the post twice I just hoped it wasn’t going to be one of those nights for us, but we scored a good goal that got us in front. Once you’re in front it just means the opposition have to commit men and push bodies forward, which obviously gives us the opportunity to counter attack. 

“We maybe should have made more of the chances in the first half. Against Portsmouth here we only went in 1-0 up at half time and got punished for it in the second half. We were conscious of that and wanted to stay on the front foot and try and get a second goal. Unfortunately we didn’t despite having plenty of opportunities, and had to soak up a bit of pressure at times in the second half, but against a side that are top of the league you’d expect that.

“The league table will be put in front of us all the time and people will be telling us where we’re at and what we’re doing, but I can honestly say that we work to smaller target that we try and hit over periods of the season. We are ahead of our target at the minute, which is good, andso long as we keep our focus we should be OK.”

United were backed by a fantastic crowd once again last night- flick through the gallery above and see if you can spot yourself.

The U’s are at home again this Saturday when we welcome Barnet to the Kassam Stadium. Get behind the team by booking your seat at www.oufctickets.co.uk or by calling 01865 337533. Book today with no booking fee, print the tickets at home, and see you on Saturday.