Ex Oxford defender Paul McCarthy dies
Everyone at Oxford United was saddened to hear of the death of our former defender Paul McCarthy, who died this weekend aged 45.Paul played over 200 times for Brighton before starring for Wycombe Wanderers, scoring for them in an FA Cup quarter final and again making over 200 appearances. He then joined Ian Atkins’ United side and was a consistent performer alongside the likes of Andy Crosby and Matt Bound at the heart of a very solid defence. Ian told us:
"He was a diamond. To be fair I had about 15 diamonds there at Oxford, great lads who were a pleasure to work with and all stuck closely together, but he was one of the ones that shone the brightest. He was a natural leader and had a great football brain. Sometimes I'd just look his way on the pitch and he would know what I was thinking and get the message across to the other players for me.
"Even after he left the club we stayed in touch and I am shocked and really sad to hear the news. I had so much time for him - we all did - and my thoughts and prayers are all with his family at this sad time."
After leaving the U’s McCarthy played for another eight years at Ebbsfleet United before finally hanging up his boots at the age of 40.
The thoughts of everyone at the club are with Paul’s family and friends.