United fell to defeat at League One newcomers Mansfield Town this afternoon, a Davis Keillor-Dunn goal in the second half enough to sink the U's in their final away pre-season game.
Oxford gave goalkeeper Matt Ingram and midfielder Idris El Mizouni their first starts as they took on The Stags. The back four of Peter Kioso, Elliott Moore, Ciaron Brown and Joe Bennett could well be the combination that opens the season against Norwich City in two weeks' time. With Will Vaulks sitting just in front of the defence, alongside El Mizouni, and Ruben Rodrigues between Tyler Goodrham and Gatlin O'Donkor on the wings, this left Mark Harris ploughing a lone furrow up top in a strong starting XI.
The home side, playing without numbered shirts, started at pace and gave the U's defence a few nervous moments in the opening five minutes, but as Oxford settled into the game, they started to pass the ball around and carve out openings of their own.
United's first effort came from good work by Rodrigues on the edge of the box, making space to play the ball to Goodrham but, surrounded by defenders, he was unable to steer his shot on target.
Mansfield still had their moments and Oxford were thankful to Bennett for blocking a shot when they broke forward. At the other end, a passing movement saw Goodrham find El Mizouni on the overlap and his cross looked destined to fall for Harris before a covering defender got back to head the ball to safety.
Oxford had a let off just after the half hour following a defensive mix-up, with Keillor-Dunn squandering a golden opportunity to score, slicing over with a gaping goal at his mercy. United then had a chance from a Vaulks corner, with Moore heading the ball back into the mix where it was met by Kioso, whose overhead kick was straightforward for Pym.
The best chance of the first half came for Mansfield in stoppage time, when a headed clearance fell for Louis Reed 25 yards out; his first-time volley was palmed to safety by Ingram to keep the scoreline blank at the interval.
Four minutes into the second half, United created their best opening yet, as Moore and substitute Greg Leigh - making his first appearance of pre-season following his travels with Jamaica - worked the ball to Rodrigues, whose shot fizzed against the post with Pym beaten.
Mansfield, with Nigel Clough barking instructions from the touchline, took the lead in the 58th minute as Keillor-Dunn applied the finishing touch to a Lee Gregory pass as the U's surrendered possession at the back, the kind of thing that games like this are designed to iron out ahead of the action starting in earnest.
With 12 minutes to go, Mansfield made a mass substitution, with eight players coming on, including former United striker Jordan Bowery. Oxford almost immediately found the leveller as Vaulks' low drive from a free kick had Pym scrambling to his left to keep the shot from sneaking in at the foot of the post.
Despite the final scoreline, this was another useful work out for the U's and there are signs of promising partnerships beginning to be built. There are now two home games, against Southampton on Wednesday and Palermo next Saturday, to iron out the final kinks and build on the work so far, before we get to the real thing.
Make sure you're there.
UNITED: Ingram, Kioso, Brown, Moore, Bennett, Vaulks, Rodrigues, El Mizouni (Leigh 46), O'Donkor (Elliott-Wheeler 65), Harris, Goodrham
Subs: Cumming, Leigh, Golding, Johnson, Elliott-Wheeler
Attendance: 2,455 (including 167 away)
Match report: Martin Brodetsky; photographers: Steve Edmunds, Darrell Fisher
Mansfield
