Oxford United v Kettering Town - Blue Square Premier

Oxford United Starting Eleven

Hinchliffe
Carruthers, Willmott, Quinn, Osbourne
Murray, Burnell, Haldane, Reid
Guy, Constable

Substitutes: Day, Clarke, Groves, Deering, Odubade.

Substitutes Used: Deering came on for Carruthers at half time, Odubade then came on as a replacement for the injured James Constable in the 65th minute of the match.

Kettering Town Starting Eleven

Harper
Eaden, Jaszczun, Christie, Branston
Wrack, Potter, Geohaghan, Boucaud
Seddon, Westcarr

Substitutes: Dorrill, Beardsley, Dempster, Solkhon, Marna.

Substitutes Used: The first substitution was made for Kettering in the 59th minute when Solkhon came on for Potter. In the 65th minute Beardsley then replaced Potter, and finally in the 74th minute of the match Marna came on to the field to take the place of Boucaud.

It seemed as though Oxford were on their way to another 3 points here, they were 1-0 up right until the 90th minute of the match and then Kettering Town came and ruined the Oxford party with a last gasp equaliser. Given that Oxford did the exact same thing to Ebbsfleet just one week before you can't really say a lot about it though; particularly when Kettering Town could have won this one such was the quality of their side. It was a tight game of football, both teams played well and a draw was ultimately probably the fairest reflection of the game possible.

Oxford took the lead in the 72nd minute courtesy of a Yemi Odubade goal; Jamie Guy had the original shot, Kettering keeper Lee Harper parried it into the path of Odubade however and he was happy to smash it into the back of the net to give Oxford a fairly undeserved advantage. Oxford only had two shots throughout the entire match, Kettering on the other hand had seven and easily could have won this one; both teams only had two on target however so in that respect it was evens. It was quite an even game, at the same time Kettering probably just about had the edge however, and although conceding a last minute goal was quite annoying; had Kettering lost this one then it would have been an incredibly unfair result for them what with them having performed so strongly throughout the match.

This Kettering Town side has quality all over the field, in each section of the pitch there are ex league players aplenty and the calibre of the squad most definitely shows. Kettering Town could well win the league this season, the point that Oxford gained here is therefore all the more impressive; if you can draw with the best, you know you must be doing something right.

Hinchliffe played well in goal for Oxford in this one, the young lad has done himself proud lately and despite a poor start with the game against Barrow; since then he has always impressed when he's played. Perhaps being on TV made him nervous, maybe the Setanta curse got to him a little; who knows, he didn't start the season well however and that's why Jake Cole had been Oxford's number one up until recently. Cole is currently out injured which is giving Hinchliffe a good chance to show Darren Patterson what he's made of; when Billy Turley is fully fit there'll surely be no competition however and Turley is likely to get the nod for league encounters each and every time (although Hinchliffe will no doubt be appearing for the odd FA Trophy game or two).

Seddon was the man that got the equaliser for Kettering in the 90th minute, it came from a free-kick and a fine bit of football it was too. It was a great goal and gave the 448 travelling fans something to cheer about; it was no less than they deserved and although painful for the Oxford team, I'm sure there'll have been celebrating the point after the initial shock of conceding so late on in the game.

The saddest news to emerge from this game is that James Constable is now out with a groin strain which he suffered in the 65th minute of the match. He was replaced by Yemi Odubade and ultimately the injury actually worked in Oxford's favour here in that Yemi was the guy to get the goal; losing Constable is a horrible blow for Oxford however and goals are now likely to be even fewer and farther between for the next couple of matches; they were sporadic enough as it was. Constable has no doubt been Oxford's best player since the start of the season, losing him is terrible news but this is just something that the team shall now have to overcome.

Before the game began a point probably would have been seen as a great result from this one, when you come so close to winning; a point just isn't quite the same however and it was disappointing to draw this one and did in fact almost feel as though the team had actually lost rather than drawn. It's another valuable point though; could prove to be quite helpful come the end of the campaign if Oxford United are in or around the play-offs, either way it was good not to lose however and despite initially being disappointed I am quite pleased that Oxford United has here gained another point as the Kassam. In the next game Oxford must now travel to Kidderminster to face the mighty Harriers, it shan't be easy but hopefully more points can there be achieved and Oxford United can thus march onwards and upwards.

Final Score: Oxford United 1 - 1 Kettering Town

Date: 06/09/08
Home Team: Oxford United
Venue: The Kassam Stadium
Referee: D Ford
Booked: Murray, Jaszczun.
Attendance: 4499