Oxford United 1 Rochdale 1

Matt Lund grabbed a point for Dale and knocked unbeaten Oxford off top spot.

Full back Rhys Bennett set up Rochdale for the equaliser in the 51st minute - his first appearance following three cruciate and ligament knee injuries in March.

Bennett crossed the ball over from the right and midfielder Lund opened his season's account by nodding in from two yards at the far post.

Bennett ruined the Dale physio's summer break, but the sacrifice made by both men is paying off.

Bennett returned to the team for his first game since March and celebrated his 22nd birthday one day early by setting up Matt Lund for a 51st minute equaliser. He revealed:

"I did my posterior cruciate and medial ligaments and my lateral meniscus. I've been working hard with our physio, Andy Thorpe, since and he gave up his own summer to help me. I was always positive I'd make it back, but I guess I owe him a beer now!"

Rochdale boss Keith Hill was delighted with his team and said:

"I think the points will take care of themselves if we play like that. We could've gone under when we conceded, but the lads adjusted well."

And Hill hopes to bring in two more players before the transfer window shuts today . He said:

"I'm sure of one. The other one is teasing me by text messages. I've been putting lots of hugs and kisses at the end of mine, so we'll see what happens."

Oxford hitman James Constable opened the scoring when he blasted in his second goal of the season from six yards in the 24th minute.

Winger Asa Hall nodded down a deep cross from defender David Hunt and keeper Josh Lillis did brilliantly to block Danny Rose's snap-shot, but Constable pounced to bury the rebound.

Beano's goal

Constable, 28, dedicated his 24th minute opener to ten day old baby daughter Amelia-Rose. He explained:

"She's been great so far and my girlfriend Laura has been doing the night shifts to let me get some sleep."

But Constable wants the Us to wake up after the break in games. He explained:

"For the last two or three years we seem to have a hangover from the first half. We don't start well, concede and then come out firing and get back on top. We need to try and kill teams off."

Oxford chief Chris Wilder was satisfied with the point given the build up to he game. He revealed:


"We had our top scorer Deane Smalley unavailable, and then I was woken at 7am by our physio telling me Dave Kitson was unwell with sickness and diarrhoea. But credit to Dave, he gave it a go for an hour and did well."

"I'm not angry. It was an entertaining game of football. You can't be angry after only five games. On reflection a draw was a fair result. The important thing is to keep the unbeaten run going."

In the 78th minute Lillis and skipper Olly Lancashire teamed up to shut out Oxford as they pressed for the winner.

Lillis blocked a ten yard effort from substitute Tyronne Marsh and central defender Lancashire hooked Constable's follow up shot off the line.

Striker George Donnelly came closest for Dale before the break, but keeper Ryan Clarke did well to get down and save his 25 yard strike.

Constable nearly broke the deadlock in the twelfth minute when he out-muscled two Rochdale defenders for a Rose corner before putting his shot into the side-netting from a tight angle.

My piece from this morning's paper

... and yesterday's edition

Oxford United 2 Wycombe Wanderers 2

Sunday's clipping

Johnny Mullins rescued a last gasp point against gutsy ten man Wycombe.

Johnny's goal

Central defender Mullins drilled in a low 96th minute equaliser from just insider the box, but boss Chris Wilder admitted:

"There were a few gloomy faces in the dressing room, but I'm not down at all. It's a battling point. And it's a good start to the season with ten points from four games."

Dean Morgan put Wycombe ahead twice as Oxford dropped their first points of the season.

Former Oxford striker Morgan repaid the home crowd's jeers with a header from six yards in the 42nd minute.

Sunderland loanee midfielder Billy Knott nodded on a deep cross from central defender Gary Doherty and Morgan pounced to leave the defence flat-footed.

Dean's first goal

Morgan added his second from the spot in the 59th minute after he was up-ended by right back David Hunt.

And the second

But Wycombe had let Oxford back into the game in the 49th minute when defender Charles Dunne was shown a red card for lashing out at winger Alfie Potter.

The resulting floated  free kick from midfielder Danny Rose on the right wing evaded everyone before bouncing into the net.

But Wycombe manager Gareth Ainsworth said:

"It was heartbreak, but only for a second. I feel huge pride and it was a great performance. It was something special after last week's home defeat."

On Dunne's sending off he added:

"We'll look at the DVD. If he did catch him in the face with an elbow, it was an accident in Charles's view. The biggest disappointment for me is to lose him now for three games."

As Oxford fought their way back into the game, keeper Matt Ingram pulled off two superb second half flying saves to shut out Dave Kitson and Mullins.

Wycombe deserved their lead and they had Oxford on the rack for most of the first half.

Morgan hooked one shot over from twelve yards and strike partner Stephen Craig saw a cheeky effort from the right flank skim over the bar.

And midfielder Nick Arnold's attempted lob on the stroke of half time needed to be clawed to safety by back-peddling keeper Ryan Clarke.

Morgan, 29, paid tribute to rookie boss Gareth Ainsworth who is still in his first year of management. He explained:

"He was once big enough to apologise for listening to some things other managers have said about me and I have total respect for him for that.


"Gaz already knows that you have to treat players as individuals and not just shout abuse at them which is what some managers have done to me in the past. I'll always give everything for someone who treats me with respect."

Meanwhile, Mullins has been dubbed 'the Magnet' by the rest of the squad. He revealed:

"The lads have nicknamed me 'the magnet' because it keeps falling to me in the box at the moment and long may it continue. I'd swap the goals for a clean sheet and a scruffy winner from someone else though.

"We're only four games into the season so we're not the finished article yet, but we're unbeaten."

My piece from the Monday edition

Bristol City 1 Wolves 2

Apologies for posting late, but I've been away on holiday!

I was also interviewed for a great new footy service just after the game and you can hear my waffle as well as some more interesting and fun stuff here: 

http://www.mixcloud.com/TNTBFootball/theres-no-turning-back-ep-3-the-hidden-past-of-bobby-moore/

My report ...

Matt Doherty believes promotion favourites Wolves might need to buy two strikers if they lose Kevin Doyle.

Right back Doherty, 21, scored a last gasp winner, but sees the £6 million rated Republic of Ireland hit man as someone who could fire Wolves back into the Championship.

Midfielder Bakary Sako crossed the ball over from the left to leave keeper Frank Fielding flat-footed and left back Doherty bundled the ball in from two yards with five minutes on the clock as defender Aden Flint and Doyle followed it over the line.

My piece from Sunday's paper

Doyle has been linked with a move to Swansea as Wolves try to ease their wage bill and Doherty said:

"If he left we'd have to get a striker or two in because he's that good. I don't think you'd get a striker who's as good as him to come to League One. I don't know what the story between him and the club is, but we'd obviously like to keep him as players."

And Doherty is hoping to tie up his own future at Molineux with only twelve months left on his current contract. He explained:

"We are negotiating, but if it is not right for both parties, then it is not right. But I want to stay. I want to be a part of, hopefully, promotion."

Midfielder Bakary Sako put Wolves ahead with a 22nd minute free kick. Full back Greg Cunningham up-ended Doyle 25 yards from goal and Sako blasted the free kick over the wall and past helpless keeper Frank Fielding into the top corner. 

Sako's goal

But Jay Emmanuel-Thomas gave City hope in the 53rd minute by scoring his third goal in the first three league starts.Striker Emmanuel-Thomas admitted:

"We're very frustrated with the end result, but very pleased with the second half performance."

Wolves manager Kenny Jackett was delighted with the result and said:

“It’s seven points from nine and two of those games have been away. But I feel a start is ten games – that would give us a really good reflection of where we are.”

"After they equalised, that was our test. I was delighted to come through that and a telling contribution six minutes from time has given us a fantastic win."

Robins boss Sean O'Driscoll fumed:

"You've got to make sure you get enough possession of the ball off the fifty-fifties to enable you to stamp your authority on he game and Wolves did that far better than us."

"The only inevitability in football is that you're going to lose and I'd rather lose in the way we played in the second half than the way we played in the first half."

My clipping from Monday's edition

Watch out for Robbie's sore throat

Interesting piece on the BBC website today in which Robbie Savage explains the various ways of manipulating a move to another club (http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/23703265).

Unfortunately, it not only paints him and others who adopt these tactics as odious individuals, it is also another knee in the nuts for the game that gave him his luxury lifestyle.

How many people are going to read this (or listen to the programme from which it was taken) and just accept it as confirmation that professional football is just one big con - and therefore not worth following?

And which executive at the Beeb thought it was a good idea to publish/broadcast this stuff? I bet the Premier League and FA suits are aghast and will take note when it comes to awarding broadcasting rights in the future.

Meanwhile, while Savage continues to make a living off the back of the game, all of the decent pros out there (of which there are many), will be tarnished with the same brush.

If Robbie Savage thinks everyone is doing the same thing as he once did, then why should we pay for season tickets and television subscriptions to watch these people? 

If it's not everyone, then he should hang his head in shame - as should the BBC for employing someone with his self-admitted lack of scruples.

And if he ever comes down with a case of laryngitis, they should check to make sure Sky or ITV haven't come in for him with a better offer.

Oxford United 2 Bury 1

It was my first visit to the Kassam on Saturday and I was very impressed with Oxford.

Make no mistake, Bury are going to be a side to be reckoned with this season and have some excellent players. The off the filed financial nightmare that threatened to sink the club last term has gone and, in Kevin Blackwell, they have a manager who has more than enough experience to compete in League Two.

Johnny Mullins, 25, said that "it probably wasn't very pretty to watch" when I spoke to him after the game. And while he was right, there were so many positives to take from the game that I'm sure most Us fans will forgive them for not knocking the ball about like Barcelona!

My piece from the Sunday paper

Mullins himself was the match winner, but I also thought his partnership with Jake Wright looked good and can only get better. I caught both Oxford goals on my mobile and so have posted them here. Not quite television quality, but for any fans who have missed the goals, they might provide a little flavour of the afternoon's entertainment.

Johnny Mullins's goal

Ryan Clarke stood firm behind the central defensive duo and he must be among the best keepers in this division. And the central midfield pairing of Andy Whing and Danny Rose worked well together.

Having not seen Rose play before, I assumed that Whing would be the enforcer and leave the tippy-tappy stuff to Rose. Not a bit of it. Former Manchester United reserve skipper Rose, 25, got up and down the pitch, put in a great shift for the team and even got in two blocks to shut out the Shakers in the twelfth minute.

Danny Rose's opener

There is no doubt that Whing's experience helps though and I'm still convinced that Oxford would have gone up last season if it hadn't been for his injuries. He's a wholehearted player -the sort fans love.

Finally, a special shout-out for Deane Smalley. This has got to be the best performance I've seen from him and it was no coincidence that he was fouled in the build up to both goals. He put himself about as though possessed.

I won't bother turning this into an Oxford 'love-in' and mention all the players, but each one contributed to this victory and - if they keep working this hard for each other and stay clear of injuries - there should be a few happy people in and around the Kassam come May.

My piece from today's edition

Swindon Town 1 Torquay United 0

Andy Williams late goal was enough to dump the gutsy Gulls out of the Cup.

Striker Williams tapped in Miles Storey's low cross from two yards in the 81st minute.

Williams goal came moments after former Robin Elliot Benyon was knocked out following a collision with Louis Thompson and received seven minutes treatment.

Martin Rice made Swindon sweat when he saved a 56th minute spot kick from Alex Pritchard after he had been up-ended by fellow midfielder Lee Mansell.

Swindon caretaker boss Mark Cooper was delighted with the win and said:

"It was a fine win. We had a rocky spell just before half time, sorted it out and dominated the second half. We deserved probably to win by more one goal. We kept going and managed to see it out."

Frustrated Torquay manager Alan Knill said:

"We had a good spell in the first half and even when the second half kicked off I thought we had a chance - then we shipped the goal. We lost concentration after Elliot Benyon was injured and they scored straight away.

"Fortunately Elliot is okay. He was out cold for about ten minutes and he' not as chirpy as he usually is, but he's okay. Then again, he walks around like he's permanently concussed sometimes."

My piece from this morning's paper

Swindon v Torquay - Capital One Cup

It's my first trip of the season to the County Ground this evening to cover the Robins versus the Gulls and I'd just like to apologise in advance for any naff jokes about feathers flying in my report!

Looking in from the outside during the summer break, the changes at Swindon have been intriguing. In fact from the moment the new owners took over late last season, I've wondered what is going on and I feel for the fans.

I know that most clubs have their ups and downs, but Town seem to lurch from crisis to potential crisis every year - with a little taste of success thrown in now and again just to give the supporters false hope.

I guess that most fans of most clubs could argue that they suffer in the same way, but even when times were good under di Canio recently, I still had my concerns. So many players were signed or passed through the club that surely it didn't make fiscal sense. One ex-player described the Italian's transfer policy to me as 'revolving door recruitment'.

Di Canio got away with it though and looks like he may have taken the same philosophy to Sunderland.

What Swindon really need is a big cash injection from a reputable source to help the club move forward. I'm afraid that a tie against Torquay isn't going to help in this regard and I wonder whether the fixture will draw in enough punters to make it worthwhile turning the lights on.

Torquay Alan Knill is one of the best young managers in the game and will bring a team including former Swindon strikers Billy Bodin - son of former Town favourite and current coach Paul - and Elliot Benyon. How many times having players returned to haunt the old clubs? Not what Swindon need this evening.

Knill was delighted with his team's draw at home to Wimbledon on the opening day and while Robins caretaker boss Mark Cooper oversaw a 1-0 defeat at Posh, I still expect the home side to have more than enough for their League Two opponents.

A plumb second round draw against a Premier League outfit would be useful for both teams of course, but I can't help but feel that the Swindon directors will be chewing their nails a little more than their opposite numbers tonight.

Cheltenham Town 2 Burton Albion 2

Rory Delap rescued a point on his debut to leave Mark Yates seething.

Former Derby and Stoke midfielder Delap, 37, scored the equaliser when he buried Alex MacDonald's corner from ten yards in the 56th minute.

But Delap also helped Burton back into the game on the stroke of half time when MacDonald flicked his cross onto the arm of Robins skipper Russell Penn and Billy Kee converted from the spot.

Cheltenham boss Yates blasted:

"I spent two hours at a managers’ meeting at Walsall, with half an hour spent on handball decisions and how the referee has given that handball against Russ Penn I will never know. We should have had one too, but he booked Terry Gornell for diving and he got them back in the game. Maybe the referee was ring rusty."

And Burton manager Gary Rowett admitted:

"The key moment was the penalty. We were a little tepid in the first half, but there was bundles of character out there and I think a draw was a fair result."

Rowett was also delighted with Delap's performance, but felt his side should have taken advantage of the midfielder's famous long throw-ins. He said:

"We had some half chances in the box and one or two off Rory's throws if we'd anticipated them a bit better. That's something we need to work on."

The two teams kick off the 2013/14 season

Former Exeter striker Jamie Cureton gave his new club the lead in the 22nd minute as Cheltenham dominated the first half.

But Cureton, also 37, was left writhing in agony with a dislocated shoulder and stretchered off after colliding with two Burton defenders when bravely poking the ball in from eight yards after rookie keeper Jordan Pickford had flapped at a goal kick from opposite number Scott Brown.

Ten minutes after replacing Cureton, substitute Byron Harrison added a second.

Winger Jermaine McGlashan's long range curler flew off central defender Marcus Holness and fell kindly for Harrison to stroke the ball in from twelve yards.

Albion should have taken the lead after only SEVENTEEN seconds, but MacDonald scuffed his shot wide from the edge of the with only Brown to beat.

And Cheltenham winger Sam Deering came close to nabbing the points in the 76th minute, but his long range effort hit the bar.

Delap is looking for one more taste of glory before hanging up his boots.

Former Premier League midfielder Delap, 37, grabbed Burton's equaliser on his debut before dismissing suggestions he was looking for an easy life. He said:

"I've seen how much Burton have progressed and feel we can do well this season. If this is my last one, I'd like to go out on a high."

Delap had the option of moving into a coaching role after being released by Stoke and revealed:

"They offered me a role before the change of manager up there and I had another offer, but you are a long time retired. While I think I can still do a job, I'll carry on playing and I definitely felt good out there."

My piece from Sunday's paper

... and from Monday's edition

Cheltenham Town 0 Northampton Town 1

My piece from the Monday paper

Luke Guttridge sealed Northampton's place in the play-off final - three years after the club got rid of him.

Former manager Ian Sampson released Guttridge, but the feisty midfielder was brought back by current boss Aidy Boothroyd and repaid his faith with some style in the 28th minute.

Striker Ade Akinfenwa flicked on Lee Collins throw-in and Guttridge volleyed home his second of the season past helpless keeper Scott Brown from 25 yards to add to Ray O'Donovan's first leg winner.

Boothroyd was delighted to get through to a final against home town club Bradford and said: "It's going to be a strange one for me and the family won't be getting any free tickets. We were resolute and played the game and not the occasion. We've done reasonably well to be where we are and we've now got to go and finish the job off against another good team."

Northampton stopper Lee Nicholls shut out last season's beaten finalists from the spot in the fifteenth minute. Ben Tozer up-ended fellow midfielder Russell Penn as he darted into the box, but Wigan loanee Nicholls did superbly to get down and push Marlon Pack's poor penalty kick away.

And Nicholls produce two point blank saves from substitutes Kaid Mohamed and Shaun Harrad as the Robins became increasingly desperate.

Disappointed Cheltenham boss Mark Yates refused to single out Pack's penalty miss and said: "I'm not criticising anyone. We win as a team and we lose as a team. The players have done the town proud and have to pick themselves up and go for a good night out. It's an achievement to get to the play-offs in successive seasons, but it's no consolation at the moment."

Birmingham City 1 Blackburn Rovers 1

My piece from Sunday's paper

Jordan Rhodes made it a rotten 48 hours for former boss Lee Clark and Birmingham City.

Scotland international striker Rhodes snatched a point for Rovers in the 66th minute to leave his old Huddersfield manager Clark groaning:

"No-one needs to tell me what that boy's about and I told my players. He reacted to the situation and my defenders didn't."

England keeper Jack Butland did brilliantly to block David Jones's point blank header from Morten Gamst Pedersen's long throw, but the rebound popped up for Rhodes to head in his 28th goal of the season from two yards.

Keeper Butland, 20, said:

"Sometimes you get lucky when you make a save and it'll go clear and sometimes you get a good striker like Jordan Rhodes who's in the right place at the right time."

But the England stopper took the positives from his season long loan from Stoke and revealed:

"I've enjoyed this season, it's been good. It's been everything I needed it to be. I've had a lot of games and had a chance to make my mistakes, but I've been pretty consistent and learned a lot as well."

But Clark was left seething with the performance and blasted:

"We've got better standards than we showed in the second half. It was a decent first half and we could've been more than one goal up. If we'd done it right we could've put the game to bed.

"But it was poor in the second half. It looked like a last day of the season game which makes me unhappy.

"I'm disappointed not to have finished higher because of the goal difference - that's been our Achilles heel."

To make matters worse for City, it was announced on Friday that club President and major shareholder Carson Yeung has lost a two year legal battle he has been waging in Hong Kong and will now face trial on money laundering charges.

Ravel Morrison opened the scoring three minutes before half time in Clark's 50th game in charge.

West Ham loanee Morrison was fed the ball by fellow midfielder Morgaro Gomis on the left  of the area and drilled it past Poland keeper Grzegorz Sandomierski from fourteen yards for his third goal of the campaign.

Both goalkeepers produced excellent saves before the break.

Butland raced out to close the gap on Rhodes before getting down to palm his low shot to safety in the 27th minute.

Five minutes later Sandomierski beat away winger Nathan Redmond's swerving thirty yard strike.

And Sandomierski also did well to claim a long range dipping volley just under his crossbar from Swindon loanee full back Paul Caddis.

Meanwhile Blackburn's Indian owners, the Venky family, were ordered to pay former boss Henning Berg £2.25 million in compensation by the High Court this week following his 57 days in charge.

Rovers caretaker boss Gary Bowyer has now seen three managers sacked this season and has been tipped to land the role on a permanent basis, but will need to sort out the futures of 61 players including eight loanees during the summer break if he gets the nod.

Bowyer identified Rhodes as Rovers main man and said:

"He's been outstanding for us all season and deserves all the plaudits. He's contracted to the club and the club have invested a lot of money in him so we need to build a team around him to strive to get into the Premier League.

"In the first half we didn't play with the tempo and intensity we have done in recent weeks, but in the second half we could've nicked it."

Bowyer will find out his week whether Indian owners, the Venky's, will give him the role on a permanent basis and he admitted:

"It's an important summer for the football club. The main conversations were about how to get through these last couple of games and that had to be the main focus. Obviously all the talk now will be who will be appointed or will it be me and that's something the powers-that-be will have to discuss.

"Hopefully we'll find out more in the coming week. This is the first time I've enjoyed it because we're safe."

But Clark is already planning for better times and said:

"It'll be exactly the same as this season in terms of there'll not be a transfer fee being paid. And the budget will be nowhere near where it was, so players coming in will not be getting the salaries that the players have in the past.

"The kids have been brilliant and so they deserve an opportunity. I'll probably carry three or four players next year in terms of age and experience and it's important that you have those types of players.

"I'll get some good young players and they'll be rewarded if they're successful. That'll be the difference in the contracts now and going forward. If they help he club get where it wants to be, they'll get the financial rewards. They'll just not be sitting on massive contracts for not being successful. That ain't a bad model.

"I know we're getting forced into it a little bit, but even if I had a transfer kitty, this is the way I want to go in terms of young players. I'm looking forward to it. I'm excited. It'll be tough, I'm not daft, but this club's still a massive pull for players."

And Monday's clipping