Oxford United's Chairman, Sumrith 'Tiger' Thanakarnjanasuth, wrote the following notes for this evening's match programme against Watford in the Carabao Cup second round:
Good evening everyone and I hope you are looking forward as much as I am to watching us take on a very talented Watford side this evening. Our visitors will be determined to try and bounce back to the Premier League at the first attempt, but they will also want to make progress in the cups this year and it should make for a very entertaining night of football.
I think we all enjoy watching Oxford United play midweek cup games. It tends to bring out the best in the players and obviously as former winners of this competition we have a proud history. I should also thank Watford for agreeing to an earlier kick off of 7pm; it’s a sensible thing to do right now as it allows teams to get away slightly earlier, and the extra 45 minutes was really only there to allow fans to get to the game after work. I was very amused when someone told me Oxford used to play on Wednesdays, but it was moved because of the Aunt Sally leagues! If that is true, I want someone to invite me for a game next time I am over because I want to know everything about Oxfordshire, including its own sport!
The question of when I can next come to a game is still top of my agenda and I am sure that all of you are wondering when you might be allowed back as well. The provisional date we were working to is now less than a month away, but we have to work to the current guidelines and those seem to change all the time. All I can suggest is that you have your season tickets ready and that you complete the questionnaire that was sent last week asking who was in your social bubble and confirming that you do want to come to games again. Most fans will, but there is no problem if you don’t feel ready yet; let us know and you can still see all the league games in iFollow.
That was how I watched the Lincoln game - I watch every match even if they kick off in the middle of the night in Thailand. I thought we played OK, if not quite at our best. That will come and will maybe take time because there are a lot of new faces in the squad. I am sure things will click together and the arrival of Sam Winnall adds to our striking options. Sam is a proven goalscorer and once he gets fully fit, we know we have a very good player on our hands and there will be some more signings to strengthen the team.
I know that Karl will weigh up all his options tonight, but with another home game on Saturday - a league game against Sunderland - we have the ideal chance to make up for Lincoln and start winning games again.
Tiger
You can read the full programme online at www.matchdayfix.com/oufc