Tamworth 0 Oxford United 0

For the fourth match in succession United had a 'must win' game that they failed to win. Not only did Oxford fail to score, but they were often matched by a Tamworth side that is fighting against relegation. Goalkeeper Danny Alcock denied James Constable on a couple of occasions, but the home goalkeeper saw less action than he was probably anticipating, as United put in a relatively toothless second-half performance.

Oxford were boosted before the game by the return to fitness of leading scorer Constable, who came into the starting line-up at the expense of Jack Midson, who failed to even make the bench. That was the only change to the side that drew 1-1 with Kettering Town eight days earlier. At half-time Mark Creighton replaced Jake Wright, who took a knock shortly before the break. Six minutes after the interval Lewis Chalmers went off for Matt Green, and with 20 minutes to go Franny Green was replaced by John Grant.

United started brightly, with Franny Green at the centre of most of the good moves, but with the Tamworth defence quick to close down, and with Alcock twice saving well from Constable, the Us had little joy. The only time they did find the net, when Rhys Day headed home a Sam Deering corner, the ball was adjudged to have gone out for a goalkick before swinging back into play. Ryan Clarke was virtually a spectator at the other end, although he did have to be alert to field an Iyesden Christie header.

In the second half United failed to impose themselves on the game, and for large periods Tamworth looked the better footballing side. For Oxford, the ball spent too much time in the air, while possession was too often conceded needlessly, with Damian Batt in particular giving away the ball in dangerous areas on more than one occasion. Again, Clarke had little to do, with Tamworth's only goal-bound effort ruled out for offside. At the other end Alcock dived bravely at Constable's feet in the closing minutes, but again had a reasonably easy ride. Grant provided a bit of spark up front, but was unable to find the target after making space for himself, but too often United lacked the vision or the ability to carve out any openings.

The pre-match optimism of Adam Murray and Alfie Potter returning to the line-up proved ill-founded, but these two players are surely key to Oxford turning around their current poor run of form. A central midfield of Chalmers and Dannie Bulman provides no creative spark, and one has to wonder why Adam Chapman, who does have that ability, failed even to feature on the bench. Simon Clist is also able to play a decent pass, but is too often isolated on the left, while Sam Deering's good form has deserted him and he is too often left chasing shadows. Batt aside, the defence remains solid, and Anthony Tonkin looks equally good going forward, forcing Alcock into one second-half save with the shot of the match. The key to United's form is the midfield, which too often of late has been too defensive and too easily out-fought.

The referee yesterday was Mark Brown, whose last Oxford game was the 1-1 draw at York in October. The whistle-happy chappy booked Constable and Deering, neither of whom could have any real arguments with the decisions. The attendance was 1,572 with 888 Oxford fans, comprising 56.5% of the attendance.

The point leaves United third in the table, one point behind Luton Town, who have played two games more, and three points behind Stevenage Borough, who have played the same number of games. United's next 'must win' fixture is on Wednesday, at Rushden & Diamonds. [@news]2682[/@news][@opponent]tamworth[/@opponent]