CRAIG Short has thrown his hat into the ring and asked Oxford United’s board to consider him in replacing Karl Robinson.

The former centre back, who played for Everton and Blackburn Rovers in the Premier League, has been a first team coach at United since August 2020.

Following the sacking of Robinson on February 26, Short has taken over in the interim, assisted by first team coach Leon Blackmore-Such and goalkeeping coach Wayne Brown.

Speaking earlier this afternoon, Short revealed that he has had conversations with the U’s board regarding his future and taking the managerial vacancy full-time.

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He said: “I’ve spoken to the board and put my name in the hat because I don’t want to lose my job and I’ve got to fight for my job.

“I know there’s a lot better candidates than me out there with probably more experience, but it’s something that I’ve enjoyed.

“The main focus for me is just trying to get performances out of the players.

“I’ve been in dressing rooms where I’ve been a senior pro or the captain, and it comes quite naturally to motivate people – I don’t find that a problem whatsoever.

“It’s a good club, I’ve enjoyed my time here and my family are from this area.

“It’s where I want to stay and play a part in any role I can going forward, so I did speak to the board about the job.”

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Short is now waiting for updates from the board as he prepares to galvanise United’s players ahead of their home clash against Derby County on Saturday.

“I was always just prepared to be taken on for the two games anyway,” he said.

“It was just a chat really and a conversation I had with them earlier in the week, just about going forward.

“You always want to know about your own job security.”

Short took charge as the U’s slipped to a 1-0 defeat at Lincoln City last weekend, an eighth loss in nine matches.

He has taken on the role as caretaker in the past, including with Hungarian side Ferencvaros.

Reflecting on his first couple of weeks in the interim post at United, Short said: “It’s been hectic and stressful, I’ve done this job before at a couple of other clubs.

“When they ask you to do it, you’ve got to do it.

“I’ve got a really good response from the players – last weekend wasn’t the result we were looking for but the performance level did improve.

“It had to improve after Cambridge away and Burton away.

“I’ve been impressed by the response in training, they’ve been working hard.”