"It took a lot of character" says Oxford United Head Coach
Oxford United enjoyed another memorable afternoon as a Jordan Bowery debut goal earned them all three points at Portsmouth on Saturday. Bowery’s smart finish was enough to give United a win as they bounced straight back to winning ways after a defeat at home to Bristol Rovers the week before.
“It more than made up for that game” Head Coach Michael Appleton told Yellow Player HD. “We’ve not had too many defeats this season but we got the frustrations out of the way after dominating a game last week. It was a fantastic place to come and win.”
United had the luxury of missing a penalty, but still had enough to recover from that setback and go on to win the match:
“It took a lot of character” Michael said. “The penalty miss gave them a massive lift and gave the stadium a massive lift too because they got behind them, but we dealt with that, we stood firm for 20 minutes then produced two bits of quality fit to win any game.”
Bowery took the plaudits but defensive stalwarts Jake Wright and John Mullins were both outstanding at the back.
“They were, when they had to be” Michael told Yellow Player HD. “When Portsmouth only played one up to it’s easy to lose your concentration, but they did that really well and they knew that when the ball went in to that striker one of them had to drop and be ready for the runners from midfield. Portsmouth packed the middle of the park but those two controlled it and monitored that very well.”
It was Wright’s astute through ball that set Bowery away for the game’s decisive moment, and Michael believes there is plenty more to come from United’s newest striker:
“He certainly made an impact. I just felt it was too big a risk to start him because he hasn’t had a competitive game since 28th November, but if he can do that then it will be interesting to see what he does when we get him fit…”
After beating one of his former clubs Appleton’s United now move on to an exciting FA Cup fourth round tie at home to another, Blackburn, on Saturday. It's a match that the Head Coach is already looking forward to:
“That’s one that the players can enjoy because we’ve got nothing to lose” he said. “We’re the home side but Blackburn are expected to win. It’s a week off from the league and I hope the players embrace that and enjoy it.”
See the whole interview plus the thoughts of Jordan Bowery and extended highlights in Yellow Player HD right now.
United have two huge cup games coming up next at the Kassam Stadium; Blackburn in the FA cup and Millwall in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy second leg. Make sure you are there to back the Yellows. Call 01865 337533 or visit www.oufctickets.co.uk to book your seat.