On a bitterly cold March evening Oxford hosted an in-form Barnet. Edgar Davids was making his first appearance at The Kassam, and the champions league winner showed his class on the night. For Oxford, Adam Chapman's loan spell at Mansfield has opened the door to new signing Scott Davies from Crawley, the centre midfielder had a good game tonight.
The Yellows were keen to put last Tuesday's home game behind them as they suffered a 4-0 defeat at the hands of Rotherham.
And they started brightly, Damian Batt barely put a foot wrong in the opening exchanges and was instrumental; even firing the occasional shot at goal.
Banet had a small flurry of chances, a driven ball across the box was missed by everyone, when any contact would have seen McCormick having to pick the ball out of the net.
Chances kept coming Oxford's way as James Constable lacked the composure to seal the deal and put Oxford in front. Sean Rigg also managed a half chance. But it was the story of Oxford's home form at the break; good play, but very little composure when it mattered.
Edgar Davids was playing for Barnet today. The Dutchman controlled the flow of the game from start to finish and is surely too good for a League Two club, even on this, his 40th birthday. It was a joy to see such a majestic footballer at The Kassam, playing football the way it should be, truly exquisite.
Barnet must have faced a rollocking from the Dutchman at half time because The Bees came out for the second half fired up, with McCormick having to be at his best to deny some point-blanc chances.
Potter also saw a chance go begging as he skyed over the bar in a one-on-one situation.
The nets fell after a ferocious Vilhete strike. And some Chuckle Brother esq figures took to the pitch to repair the damage. This happened once more before the final whistle, providing the valuable injury time Oxford capitalised on.
And as the game seemed to fade in the final stages, into another predictable Oxford performance, Michael Raynes nodded in the winner five minutes into added on time. A delightful cross from Man of the Match Scott Davies saw Tom Craddock head back across goal for Raynes to head into the open net.
A dream ending for Oxford and Raynes. The centre back's two goals have now come in the last minutes of games, last against Accrington Stanley in the FA cup. But this one mattered more as it leaves The U's five points off the play-offs.
I cannot attend the next match as I'll be at Brunel University on an open day. It's against Chesterfield, who sit five points behind Oxford. I consider myself an optimistic person, but fail to see us getting anything from that tie.
Attendance: 5,027
Man of the Match: Scott Davies - Had to deal with the threat of Edgar Davids throughout. Delivered ball for goal.
Match Rating: *** - The main entertainment was watching the groundsmen hoist the net back up!
Referee Rating: ***** - Excellent officials. Let the game flow very well. Understood that slide tackles aren't always fouls! Something hard to come by these days...
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