Oxford United chairman Grant Ferguson wrote the following programme notes for the Sky Bet League One game against Plymouth Argyle:
I never got to see Joey play; I feel like I missed out. When I heard the way people here at Oxford United talk about him and I hear the fans sing his name at every game, I took time to review the evidence… and the result… a legend. The word is used too often in football and should only really apply to those that contribute something to a club and the game in ways that very few others do, and for sure that is Joey Beauchamp. That’s why I am proud that we can play a small part in supporting his family tonight, when we will donate £1 from every ticket plus the half-time draw money towards a trust fund set up for his daughters. That is the least we can do, and as Chairman, I repeat the pledge that the club made a year ago when Joey died: we will do all we can to honour his memory and support those he left behind.
Joey was as much a fan of the club as he was a player, and I’m sure he would be hoping the current team can get an important win against a very good Plymouth side tonight. Unfortunately, of late, this season’s frustrations continue. In the last home game against Shrewsbury, we played well in the second half and couldn’t get a goal, and then on Saturday at MK I thought we again played well after the break, scored a terrific goal, but again couldn’t convert that into a win.
As we have said, the expectations this season were for the team to be much higher up the league. A draw on Saturday was an important step forward, but it was only a small one, and we need to keep moving forward. I thought the togetherness was good, the commitment was total, and hopefully we can get back to winning ways tonight.
Off the field it has been good to see Adam Benson make a positive start as the Head of our commercial team. I think he took a very sensible approach in stepping back a little and understanding the way the club works before he arrived. It’s not just about our teams playing football. We have a lot going on: the new stadium plans, the arrangements with Firoka, our commercial partners, the Board, the staff and so many relationships for him to understand and work with. He is now already fully involved with new kits - already signed off and looking great - season-ticket prices, sponsors, pre-season and so many exciting new developments between now and the end of this season in May.
We have had a tough season to date, no hiding from that, but there is a still a lot of football to be played and I know Karl, the staff and the players will keep giving it their all in every game so that we finish as high in the league as we can. That is very important.
Please remember that the youth team are here tomorrow to play Leeds United in the FA Youth Cup. What a game for them and the club, as it is a chance to go further than we ever have done in the competition. That’s exciting and bodes well for the future, so we’d love to see as many of you here tomorrow as possible.
Two big games this week then. Enjoy them both.
Grant
You can read the full programme online at www.matchdayfix.com/oufc