No idea what’s going on here (Photo: Steve Daniels)

Matt Donohue, take a bow. He has managed what no referee has done in the previous 92 games; he awarded Oxford United a penalty. Of course, he had to ruin that history-making decision by levelling things up at the end of the game by giving Charlton one too, but let’s not allow that to overshadow this unique gesture. I hope that he enjoys the proceeds of the PGMOL sweepstake!

I know that people complain about match kick offs being changed for the TV schedules, but I actually quite like these lunchtime starts. It’s a rare excuse for a pre-noon pint and it means that we still have a large chunk of Saturday afternoon to sulk about the result.

And so it was that I found myself in the Golden Ball with a pint of Butcombe Original in my hand at a time when normal people are still thinking about whether or not to emerge from under their duvet. And then the walk to the ground, down Dogshit Alley (possibly not its official name), through the back streets of Littlemore and past the club shop to the stadium. Arguably not the most scenic of walks (a week earlier I was taking in the views from Watlington Hill), but on this occasion the destination was the most important thing.

Unlike on Wednesday evening, the pre-match build-up was less reflective and emotional. The game kicked off in bright Spring sunshine and, for the first half at least, there was little to get excited about. It took half an hour for United to have their first shot: a Jamie Donley free kick that sailed harmlessly over the bar.

That was about it for a first half that offered plenty of endeavour but little in the way of entertainment and less in the way of chances. At least the Charlton fans seemed to be enjoying themselves in the sunshine: a stark contrast to the half-full Blackburn end on Wednesday. Then again, the poor Rovers fans had even less to sing about, so it was hardly surprising that we didn’t hear a peep out of them.

In the second half, it was Oxford that looked more like scoring. Michał Helik had the first opportunity, lifting his shot over both Will Mannion and the crossbar after latching on to a Donley pass before claiming that the Charlton keeper had clattered into him after he got his shot away. You don’t often get those, but United were to have their reward shortly afterwards.

A bit like Oxford under Gary Rowett, Charlton’s main attacking threat came from long throws, free kicks and corners and, for the most part, the U’s defence dealt with everything that came their way fairly easily, until later in the game.

Then, in the 57th minute, something unheard of occurred. Will Lankshear challenged for a rather hopeful Sam Long cross that drifted into Mannion’s arms. However, Kayne Langley clearly impeded the United striker, who fell to the floor, leaving Donohue pointing to the penalty spot. There was bemusement among the crowd, who initially weren’t sure what the protocol was.

Why were the Charlton players allowing Cameron Brannagan a free shot at goal? Why was Mannion rooted to his line? Then it dawned on everyone what was happening. A football throwback to the old days, when a foul in the box was punished by the award of a penalty kick. Would Brannagan remember what to do? After all, it had been almost two years since he last had the opportunity to thwack the ball unchallenged past a goalie. United had already passed the English record of 85 games without a penalty and now they were robbed of their opportunity to make it the round 100.

Thankfully, such thoughts were far away from Captain Cam, who coolly slotted the ball beyond Mannion’s outstretched arms into the corner of the goal (Mansfield, who had set the previous record for games without a pen, missed their first one – coincidentally against Oxford). The celebration that followed was as much catharsis as it was acknowledging a vital goal that, temporarily at least, lifted the U’s out of the Championship relegation zone.

Brannagan does what Brannagan does (Photo: me)

There were several opportunities for United to extend their lead: Aidomo Emakhu, starting in place of the injured Myles Peart-Harris (the only change to a starting line up in four games) wriggled his way into the penalty area but failed to get his shot away before being closed down; Lankshear managed to beat Mannion with a shot, but the goalie’s touch on the ball took enough pace off the shot to allow the visitors to clear; and Przsemysłav Płacheta, on as a substitute, linked up well with fellow sub Nik Prelec to get a shot across the goal when he might have been better off pulling it back for Prelec.

There was a certain inevitability about Charlton’s equaliser when it arrived in stoppage time. Oxford had been dropping deeper and deeper towards the end of the game, trying to protect their lead, with Matt Bloomfield’s substitutions leading to a more defensive mindset. That’s fine when it works, but on this occasion, the Charlton pressure eventually told.

Oxford had been dealing with all the high balls into their area, but as the game was drawing to a close, Ciaron Brown inexplicably pulled the shirt of Lloyd Jones as the Charlton defender went up with Jamie Cumming for yet another hopeful cross. The United goalkeeper looked like he was claiming the ball, or would have had a foul awarded after dropping it, except for Brown’s clear foul, giving the referee the opportunity to level things up.

Charlie Kelman’s spot kick was almost within Cumming’s reach, but not quite, and so the Yellows dropped two points that might prove invaluable come the season’s end. The Charlton fans celebrated by chanting ‘We are staying up’, surely already a given, while for the U’s faithful the draw felt more like a defeat, given the late nature of the equaliser.

The team now has a week off to recuperate, put this game behind them, and get ready for a tough challenge at Southampton next Saturday before the international break. The point lifted Oxford to 19th place, briefly, before Blackburn and West Brom went and spoiled things with unlikely wins in the afternoon fixtures. At least Leicester had reverted to type by losing to an off-form QPR, allowing United to climb a place and leaving safety still within their grasp.

And following Wednesday’s lowest crowd since promotion, the attendance was back in line with the season’s league average, which was nice. With a sold-out away end at St Mary’s, an away win would come in pretty handy to leave the side in a more hopeful position before the final stretch of the season.

UTFO

Games without a penalty: Zero!