Player-coach David Oldfield says Oxford United go into their must-win match at Macclesfield still believing they can do it.

The U's need to win their last two games and hope that Yeovil and Northampton don't, to stand a chance of reaching the Division 3 play-offs.

And although they have yet to register a win under new boss Graham Rix, Oldfield says the belief is still there.

"We'll go into tomorrow's game full of heart and full of hope," he said.

"The other teams have some tricky fixtures. We need to go to Macclesfield in a positive frame of mind and win the game, as I believe we will, and then see what the situation is for our last one against Rochdale

"There are going to be some twists and turns between now and the end of the season and it's certainly not all over by any means.

"I've had a feeling all season that we're going to get promoted and I still think we can do it."

Rix may again be in a position of not knowing his team until just a few hours before.

Steve Basham, Jon Ashton, Matt Robinson, Chris Hackett, Danny Brown and Simon Cox have been training separately to the main team because of injuries.

Skipper Andy Crosby, chosen this week in the PFA's Division 3 Select team, is suspended after getting sent off in the Easter Monday defeat at Torquay.

So the U's will have to find a new centre-back pairing, probably perming two from three out of Paul McCarthy, Matt Bound and Ashton, if he's fit, if Rix continues with a flat back four.

Oldfield says Oxford's players need to be more "switched on" as a group so they don't concede the kinds of sloppy goals that proved so costly in the 2-2 draw at home to Cambridge.

"We're not in a rich vein of form but the players have taken on board what Graham wants to do.

"We need to be more switched on and concentrated as a group defensively. Last Saturday I felt the nature of the goals we conceded was poor. We got what we deserved.

"But the lads came back in on Monday really positive."

In Matthew Tipton the Silkmen have a striker who has scored 19 goals this season - some record for a team in their lowly position.

Oldfield said: "We need somebody to step out of the pack and score two or three goals for us these next two games. But that's not necessarily just the strikers . . . in defence and in attack we work as a group."

Macclesfield expect to have Jon Parkin back following a foot injury. He will take over from Martin Carruthers alongside 19-goal Matthew Tipton, with Paul Harsley playing just behind the front two.