CHRIS Wilder is urging his Oxford United team to forget the recent interruptions and get back on their winning run when Barrow arrive in town tomorrow, writes JON MURRAY.
It's been almost two weeks without a game for both clubs because of the extreme weather, but the U's have a boost for the Blue Square Premier game with 15-goal top scorer James Constable returning from his one-game ban.
Manager Wilder says United, playing catch-up with those above and knowing that most have games in hand on them, cannot afford any slip-ups if they want to maintain their hopes of reaching the play-offs.
“We have to just keep it rolling,” Wilder said.
“Barrow will come down here and will want to cause an upset.
“We have to make sure we compete, which I thought we didn't do that well in the first half against Lewes.
“For us to play those games at the end of the season that we want to, we've got to take maximum points. We can't afford any slip-ups.”
Simon Clist will make his long-awaited debut and with Craig Farrell challenging Constable in attack, the U's boss now has plenty of possible permutations.
He said: “We've got options and it's great for the players, knowing they've got to play well to hang on to the shirt.
“It's a healthy club at the moment, we've got to make sure we keep this thing rolling forward.”
Training has been difficult for the past fortnight, with a lack of pitches locally that are not snow-covered, and it has meant United's players having to find surfaces other than grass, and keep ticking over in small-sided games or on smaller-than-normal pitches.
Yesterday they were at Tilsley Park, Abingdon.
The Kassam Stadium pitch should be fine for tomorrow afternoon, provided there was no further snow.
“I looked at it today and it's OK, a lot softer than I expected it to be,” Wilder said after training yesterday.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel