This Fan’s View is based on a very different football day out experience than that to which I have become accustomed over the years. And totally unexpected it was too.

I don’t want to bore you with personal details but a bit of scene setting is probably helpful. Having decided to become a man of leisure, Friday was my last day at work and I’d arranged a few drinks in Oxford from 4:30 onwards for (ex) colleagues. Mrs Fan’s View joined us and seemed quite keen to get me on a reasonably early bus home. The 10:10 it was and I didn’t understand what the little look she gave me was all about when I poured a large brandy before heading to bed.

It became a bit clearer next morning when I was asked how I was feeling. “Not too bad”. (I had felt better). Are you up to a bit more drinking I was asked. “Possibly” (More beer wasn’t the first thing on my mind at that point I’ll be honest). “Right then”, I was told, “we’ve got to get the 5 to 11 bus back into Oxford”. And dress was to be smart casual.

The first drink in the Eagle and Child just before midday wasn’t the easiest to get down but things improved thereafter. By now I’d kind of twigged what was going on as faces of mates and family who follow the yellows were in evidence. Mrs F V had booked a box and stadium tour at one o’clock. It was not until a little later that I realised I was match ball sponsor. All for a significant birthday and all arranged to military precision including a last minute change of plan here and there to, smoothly in my eyes, overcome a last minute challenge or two.

After another drink in the White Rabbit it was a couple of taxis up to the ground and the day at OUFC began. (Please note I said the day at OUFC not at the Kassam stadium. This is massively significant.)

We entered a world that said OXFORD UNITED. This world is far removed from that encountered home game after home game by the average fan sitting in the North, East and South stands. Up to Saturday I’ve been such a punter. A punter sat in a soulless breeze block stadium, admittedly with a great view of the pitch, but with nothing that is whispering at me throughout this is Oxford United F.C. There are a few things up on the walls that are OUFC related but nothing of real meaning. Another week and it will all be London Welsh territory and we know every one of the breeze blocks are Firoz Kassam’s.

It doesn’t feel like that at all in the corporate areas leading from the corridor running alongside all of the Executive boxes. If only there was a way of getting some of this Oxford Unitedness, and the hope for the future that this brings, permeating out into the general environs of the Kassam Stadium. It may then encourage the lower orders (not sure that this is the right description but I include myself in this category) to really believe that all branches of the OUFC family are in this “together” and no one feels disenfranchised. Whilst giving away free tickets, a very generous gesture, is one thing this would be altogether something else. Of course any disenfranchisement is unintentional and I’ve no idea how the club could pull this off as they are just tenants of Firoka. The drinks thing before the York game was a good effort but probably any chance of this being a regular long term solution to anything is ultimately doomed to failure. There’s the cost of renting the set up for starters then rent to Kassam for just setting it up on his land. Boy, are we hamstrung sited where we are. I really hope there is a master plan being hatched.

Anyway, back to the tour. There’s the passage of fame. The history. The eras. The black and white photographs. Legends of yesteryear . And when I say legends they are to me and many United fans of my vintage. There’s a list of every player ever to have played for us. Yes, US. I could have spent hours reading these names and reminiscing, given the opportunity. We were shown the board room but obviously couldn’t go in. It was full. I was surprised just how many suits there were around and how many boxes there actually are. And the number of staff too. Our box was number 21 – Arthur Turner. Legend.

Trophy Cabinet. Milk Cup. So what if it is probably a replica, even if it wasn’t played for again. We got to touch it.
We thought a door would be opened, we would be told these are the dressing rooms and we’d spend a couple of seconds walking round and then out. Not a bit of it. Music was blaring out. The players were in there and (apparently) happy to have a quick word and have pictures taken. This is all probably in their job descriptions alongside, “score a few goals”, “make a few tackles” and “take a player out when the referee isn’t looking” or whatever. But fair play they do it well. Most of us were about as far from being a star struck youngster as you can get but the players probably don’t realise what it means to an old git like me (I can’t speak for the others but I’d probably put some in our party in that category too). There were people in that dressing room that I admire tremendously as footballers. (I’ve often said that we’ve got the players but not the team).

The whole thing had a professional feel about it. The warm up area. The treatment room. By half past one all tourists had to be gone to allow management and players to focus on the task ahead.

Rosie and Jeremy Charles have done all of this many times before but there is a welcome easy going slickness about it all. And the young lad who showed us round was just as good too. Knowledgeable and reassuring.

To any Oxford fan who has not done this and can afford to do so I recommend that you get together and go for it.
I have to thank the club for the day and my good lady for fixing it all up. (She should have been a project manager. Trying to get all of our lot in one place at one time was probably like trying to herd cats).

I am now going to be more positive than some might expect and I don’t think it is because my head has been turned by this experience. Others may think otherwise but I can only write as I feel. (How many times have I said that?)
The season is not quite over so it is not yet time for a full summary of 2014/15 but I’ll throw in a little retrospective anyway.

Anyone who has read many Fan’s Views will know that I have not been a fan of Michael Appleton. So many things had me ranting and raving. Tippy tappy football on the edge of our own penalty area that not only went nowhere but put us in real risk of losing possession and conceding a goal. Free-kicks on the half way line knocked short, sideways and backwards with the opposition being much more likely to end up with a goal scoring chance than us. An apparent refusal to grasp what league two was all about with the need to battle away in midfield and for defenders to have to put their foot through the ball fairly regularly.

I think all of these weaknesses (others may not think they were weaknesses) have now largely been binned and that we are very much moving in the right direction. I had been far from convinced that this would happen.

Saturday’s performance may have made me overlook the numerous boring and poor home performances – York & Northampton being recent examples. But I’ll overlook this overlooking and go for positivity.

The team now seems to have a much better shape and structure and one thing I really like is how we can change a few personnel and they seem to be able to slip in and out without too much notice.

I’d like to see George Baldock in a yellow shirt again but as he is injured and probably sought after by others Mapp may not get his wish in being able to re-sign him. That said, Sam Long (Bicester lad) has done a fantastic job since he came in. He could have a lengthy and successful career with us.

It was the centre-half pairing that raised a few eye-brows. This time it was Jake Wright’s turn to drop out with the manager giving Chey Dunkley another airing. I’m a massive fan of our captain but with his contract running out at the end of the season and him not even being on the bench I have to ask what’s going on. Beano style negotiations, perhaps. Or he may be carrying a slight strain.

Johnny Mullins and Dunkley were fine together. (As had been Wright and Dunkley). Dunkley looked perfectly capable of doing what is required next season. Is having all three on our books a luxury?

For more than half the game it was Andy Whing / Dunkley and not Mullins / Dunkley. With a few minutes to go to half time Mullins suffered a potentially serious injury. I thought it was both deliberate and nasty and if it had happened in rugby would have resulted in severe punishment. Tom Elliott, the Cambridge forward, waited for Mullins to jump for a ball and only after our guy was well into his upward trajectory made contact. This spun Mullins over by about 180 degrees and he came down headfirst into the turf / mud.

Although a free-kick was awarded, referee Carl Berry must have thought there was nothing really untoward about the incident and no card of any colour was brandished. He was one of the most hapless we have had – and there has been some competition – failing time and again to penalise pushing on Danny Hylton. Another unfathomable decision came near the end of the game when Alex MacDonald, just standing there, was jumped into by an opponent who then was awarded a free-kick. I could have sworn our man was shown a yellow card but no Sunday paper or match report indicates this to be the case.

Whingy slotted in just like that. He did everything a centre half needed to do and at times passed the ball simply and effectively. He is nowhere near as bad a player as some have recently portrayed him to be.

The midfield, a much maligned area is now so much better. I don’t recall us making many tackles in this area but such is our closing down and marking we don’t need to. It was noticeable that jobs are being done all round as instructed. I’ve probably said this before but I’ll say it again. I think MacDonald is instrumental in this. His work rate and tracking back is such that he is almost another central midfield type player in addition to being a wide man. He does tackling too the feisty little fella that he is.

We were the better team throughout with the more skilful players and restricted Cambridge to such an extent that I cannot remember them having a proper effort on goal.

We on the other hand could have had many more than the two we got.

Compared with some of the stuff we have witnessed in the recent past we have players who are much better at controlling the football. For goal number one Kemar Roofe went this way then that and then back again before finding Hylton who had made a run to become available. Danny stumbled a bit, kept possession, did a couple of drag backs without ever looking totally balanced but such is his ability got the ball back to Roofe. He went to the left then to the right before firing home. What a boost for season ticket sales if he were to be here again next season.

Goal number two was just a routine header from a corner. That’s not to say they don’t have to be worked really hard for. It was great to see Hylton score from open play once more. Our player of the season so deserved it. I did not vote. I could say that’s because football is a team game but the truth is I never got round to it. If I had though, that’s where my vote would have gone.

We had a really good flurry of attacking at the start of the second half but a third goal never came. That didn’t matter because we knew we were that much superior. By the end we’d had a couple cleared off the line and hit the post in addition to being close on a few other occasions.

Patrick Hoban again had a shot blocked and Kyle Vassell should probably have done better when one on one with the keeper. Paddy needs that second goal but other than that no one was really bothered as it was a comfortable two nil.

For all this progress the team has not been tested against one of the top sides when they really had something huge to play for, like **** or bust as far as automatic promotion or getting in the play-offs are concerned. It would have been interesting. Such is Newport’s goal difference even if they beat us next week they cannot make seventh place. If we beat them we’ll only be four points behind them.

So, what’s my view of Mapp now you may well ask. Firstly I’ll say I think that if an above average manager who knew L2 from the start had been given the finances and resources Appleton has had they would have at least got us in the play-offs. If I was the decision maker I would probably have got rid long ago. But given the improvement and what has been built so far now would be a strange time to make a change so I’ll acknowledge how much better we have done towards the end of the season and buy my season ticket with a fair amount of optimism. I’m even tempted to look at the odds the bookies are offering for us to go up in 2015/16. Mad or what?

By October we’ll have a better idea.

But on the basis that football clubs are always looking to improve the quality of their players, however harsh that may seem, I’m wondering whether by the same token there are those who think the soon to be jettisoned from Brentford, Mark Warburton, would be a better option than the current occupier of their manager’s / head coach’s position.

And for no particular reason I thought I’d finish with this.