Darren Patterson admits Oxford United could have a real gem on their hands if Yemi Odubade continues the improvement which has seen him transformed over the past month.

Yemi has gone from being left out altogether, or used as a sub and occasional impact player, to one of the most exciting and effective pacy strikers in the Conference.

And he maintained his remarkable finish to the campaign with a superb winning goal as the U's beat Rushden 1-0 to bring the curtain down on their home season.

It was their first victory in nine encounters with the Diamonds - and Odubade was the one with the cutting edge.

Patterson said: "I don't think we reached the heights of the last four or five performances, but in saying that, Rushden didn't really bother us too much and I thought we looked the side more likely to score.

"If you consider the result at their place not so long ago (a 5-0 defeat), it's a nice turn-around for us.

"It was a real good goal in the end.

"I'm absolutely delighted that everybody's now talking about Yemi, because I've never gone away from the fact that he's an absolutely smashing kid. He'd just lost his focus, and he's now got that back.

"Mickey Lewis has just said to me: 'I can't remember the last time Yemi's scored in the last five minutes when he's started'. That shows his fitness levels are improving.

"He kept going and he kept going and if he does that next season, we've got a proper player on our books."

Odubade is just one whose recent performances have given United's coaching staff food for thought with their hunger and desire to do well, and stay a part of the Oxford set-up.

Patterson said. "This is a big club to play for, and there's a lot of expectation. Things haven't gone our way in certain things and in certain games, and individual players have been getting stick, and I think a lot of them have grown up in these last three or four months."

It was United's eighth win in their last ten matches and the fans went home happy . . . especially as ex-Oxford midfielder Andy Burgess was left to choke on his words that Rushden have a better group of players than United.

It certainly didn't look that way last night.