HIS varied CV may include a spell at arch rivals Swindon Town, but Brian Howard’s debut for Oxford United should have gone a long way to convince any doubters not to hold it against him.

Despite clearly being short of match fitness, the midfielder offered more than a glimpse of his talents against Accrington Stanley on Tuesday night.

It took him just 15 minutes to make a difference, showing great vision to spot Danny Hylton’s run before – more importantly – having the ability to land the ball on a sixpence for the striker to open the scoring in the 3-1 win.

The game was Howard’s first taste of Sky Bet League Two, after spending the previous 11 seasons at a higher level.

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He says he could easily have stayed there after receiving a host of offers, both from higher up the Football League pyramid and overseas, this summer.

But all too aware that at 31, this was a crucial move to get right after being released from Birmingham, he waited for the right call to come.

“I had other options over the summer and I could’ve signed up, but after my previous 18 months I’ve made a couple of bad decisions and things haven’t quite worked out,” he said.

“So I couldn’t afford to make another bad one at this stage of my career.

“I’d rather go to a club that’s forward-thinking, rather than the last couple of clubs I’ve been at have been on a downward curve and I’ve come in at the wrong time.

“The whole project really appeals to me and if you can go into a club that’s on the up and be a part of something that’s hopefully going to last, then in years to come when I’ve hung my boots up I can say ‘I was part of getting that club to where it is now’.

“That’s the biggest appeal to me and at this stage in my career it’s worth more, for sure.”

It is a laudable approach, but Howard is candid enough to admit joining a side sat in the lower reaches of the League Two table would not have happened without a previous connection with Michael Appleton.

The U’s boss signed him for Portsmouth in 2012, and although the club’s financial problems meant they only worked together briefly, it made a lasting impact.

Howard said: “If the gaffer wasn’t here I wouldn’t be sitting here now, I’d have taken something else.

“We went into Portsmouth together, but all the stuff off the pitch stopped that.

“Part of the conversation we had was ‘look, we both have unfinished business, let’s take what we wanted to achieve there and do it here’.

“I’m 31, I’m not 34. I’m coming here to kick on again and that’s why it’s important the manager is here.

“I know they can get the best out of me and I can become better.”

And what of his spell at Swindon?

“Wherever I’ve been I’ve given 100 per cent, so hopefully not too many fans will hold that against me,” he said.

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