Oxford United Chairman Grant Ferguson wrote the following programme notes for the Sky Bet League One visit of Bolton Wanderers:
What a great night of football we have in front of us with the new league leaders in town and our new Head Coach in charge for his first home game. I’d like to formally welcome Des to the club and wish him the very best of luck this evening. He is a very impressive young man, has enjoyed success wherever he has been, and I believe is a very exciting appointment for this football club. Des’s move to Oxford went very smoothly, and we thank City Football Group and Mumbai FC for the very professional way they dealt with the transition. As a result, we seem to have the unexpected bonus of a new fanbase in India. That’s a measure of the regard they have for Des and the job he did there, not just in building a winning team but also in making sure the whole community and fanbase were included.
Everyone was disappointed with the result at Cheltenham on Saturday, but in football, very rarely can you write the script. Notwithstanding, Des joins us with the team in a great position in the league, still in the FA Cup, through to the last 32 in the Trophy, and everyone is confident that we can keep that momentum going given the outstanding ability and commitment in the squad, and the leadership and support they have.
We also made another important appointment in the past few weeks, with Sam Rose becoming the Women’s team Manager. Sam is another experienced but young, exciting, capable and ambitious manager that we look forward to seeing take the team to the next level.
Exciting times then, but only possible with the strong foundations we already have in place. Craig Short and the rest of the support staff have been outstanding in the way they again handled the head coach transition, including Lewis Price who showed unwavering commitment in trying circumstances. Gemma Sims and everyone behind the scenes with the women’s team made sure we didn’t miss a beat while we looked for a new manager, and Stevie Kinniburgh stepped in and coached the team when it was most needed. The Academy staff have been so supportive, while Chris Hackett stepped up and helped the first team while also guiding the under 18s through to the next round of the FA Youth Cup. The type of selfless One Club mentality that stands us in good stead. Thank you all.
Finally, I am sure we will have a big crowd here tonight and I hope you have seen that Half Season Tickets have gone on sale. There are some huge games still to come and Half Season Tickets are the easiest and cheapest way to guarantee that you are part of things. As I said, exciting times: come and get behind us.
Grant
You can read the full programme online at www.matchdayfix.com/oufc