28th January 2000
28th January 2000 MARK ALLOTT will step straight back into Athletic's starting line-up for the visit of lowly Oxford tomorrow. The club's 11-goal leading scorer missed the game at Burnley last week, but has fully recovered from a bout of gastro-enteritis. Allott was sorely missed in the 3-0 defeat at Turf Moor and will be reunited with Steve Whitehall as Athletic revert to their first-choice strike pairing.
They are aiming to extend their unbeaten home league record to five games and, with Shaun Garnett battling through a slight calf injury, will be otherwise unchanged. Allott's return means Matthew Tipton drops to the substitutes' bench, where he could be joined by rookie midfield man Danny Boshell.
The untried 18-year-old —a good passer with an eye for goal — earns his first call-up after showing fine form in the reserves. Richard Graham is continuing his recovery from a back problem and is named among the substitutes. But Craig Dudley is still struggling with a severely-bruised foot and Paul Beavers is ruled out by a groin injury.
ATHLETIC (probable): Kelly, S McNiven, Garnett, Hotte, Adams, Holt, Rickers, Sheridan, Duxbury, Allott, Whitehall. Subs (from): Miskelly, Jones, Graham, Innes, Tipton, Boshell.
Oxford's team is set to feature Nigel Jemson, a man familiar to Athletic after hitting the winning goal against them in the 1990 Littlewoods Cup final. Jemson, who had been languishing in the Scottish leagues, signed on loan last night until the end of the season. His arrival could see Oxford manager Mickey Lewis go for broke with three strikers. His side are only one place above the relegation zone and, last weekend, suffered a 5-0 humiliation at home to Bristol Rovers. It said much about Oxford's performance that goalkeeper Richard Knight was their man of the match. But Knight will still make way tomorrow as Swedish 'keeper Paul Lundin is back from suspension.
OXFORD (from): Lundin, Robinson, Watson, Whelan, McGowan, Tait, Murphy, Powell, Cook, Jemson, Lilley, Knight, Abbey, Beauchamp, Shephard, Anthrobus.
Oxford
governed by Murphy’s Law
THERE
has been one key factor keeping Oxford’s heads above water in a season
of struggle — Murphy’s Law. Matt Murphy’s
14 goals make him the most prolific midfield player in the second division
and, without him, floundering Oxford might already have been sunk. Instead,
the side who visit Boundary Park tomorrow are one place and three points
above the relegation zone.
Manager
Mickey Lewis could finish the campaign eternally grateful to Murphy, especially
as the 28-year-old looked set to seek pastures new when his contract ran
out at the end of last season. Murphy,
who cost only £15,000 from non-league Corby Town, had played 160
league games for Oxford and, when they dropped out of division one in May,
he was offered another deal. He stalled
for several weeks and there were fears that he would move on under the
Bosman Ruling. But he eventually decided
to stay and, with the best form of his career, has emerged as the man opponents
fear most in a team which otherwise struggles for goals.
Athletic
know all about Murphy, who scored a controversial winning penalty against
them at the Manor Ground in August. The
verdict of a foul by Shaun Garnett on striker Steve Anthrobus prompted
Athletic boss Andy Ritchie to claim: “That lad went down like a sack of
spuds.” Murphy, however, also has an
eye for the spectacular. He cracked
a superb goal at Reading recently, only to better it at Cardiff with a
flying, horizontal volley from 20 yards which could hardly be bettered
by any of the Premiership’s megastars. It
is fortunate for The U’s that one man has struck such an excellent vein
of form. They brought in a new strike
force following their relegation, but neither of the new signings has been
regarded as a success. Derek Lilley,
who had cost Leeds United £500,000 from Greenock Morton, was allowed
to leave Elland Road for a small fee. After
a modest return of four goals so far, he is no longer assured of an automatic
place in Oxford’s side.
Anthrobus,
meanwhile, had a pre-season build-up packed with promise after arriving
on a free transfer from Crewe. He went
on to score on the opening day of the season, but has subsequently misfired
and is in a similar position to Lilley after managing only one more goal
since his successful debut. Although
youngster Jamie Cook has filled in with promise, the enigmatic Joey Beauchamp
doesn’t hit the net as often as he might and former Athletic forward Nicky
Banger is no longer at the club. Of
the other players brought in during the summer, Peter Fear has gradually
settled into midfield, while goalkeeper Andre Arendse will be missing tomorrow
as he is playing for South Africa in the African Nations Cup. There
has been only one major departure on the playing front, defender Phil Gilchrist
moving to Leicester for £200,000. Yet
all has not been sleepy in the City of Dreaming Spires — Oxford have seen
the departure of both their manager and one of his successors since Athletic
met them in late summer. Malcolm Shotton
was the first to go, paying the price for relegation and a disappointing
start to the new season.
Shotton,
a former player who was part of the club’s glory days during the 1980s,
left by mutual consent in November. Lewis
was promoted from the post of youth-team coach, taking over in a caretaker
capacity while Shotton’s successor was decided. When
Oxford immediately began a run of 11 games without defeat, it became a
formality that Lewis would be kept on for his first job in full-time management. To
aid his development, he was given the backing of a Technical Director,
with Ray Harford agreeing to help out while the club got back on an even
keel. But it didn’t last long. Harford
preferred a training pitch to a comfortable office chair and was soon off
to Millwall. He was unveiled this week
as the Lions’ new first-team coach to provide yet more proof that, in football,
the merry-go-round will never stop turning.
A proven goalscorer
throughout his career, Jemson struck 23 goals to finish as the U's top
scorer in the 1996-7 season. Lewis added: "It's a great signing for us
and it's a pretty good move for Jemmo as well. He can earn himself a longer
contract and put himself in the shop window in English football."