Oxford United were held to a 0-0 draw at Forest Green Rovers this afternoon, despite dominating the game and having the better chances. United, who won 5-1 at the New Lawn last season, struggled to come to terms with the sandy and uneven pitch, but were still the better of the two sides. It could have been so much better for the Us had they not been denied a blatant penalty at the start of the second half, but Darren Patterson will have been pleased with both his side's workrate and attitude as they earned their third successive clean sheet.[@news]2281[/@news] [@opponent]forest green rovers[/@opponent]

United started the game strongly, and after just four minutes Barry Quinn's header was well saved by Terry Burton. Oxford continued to be in charge throughout the first half, without creating many clear-cut scoring chances. The best opportunity fell to Justin Richards after half an hour, when he was superbly set free by Eddie Anaclet, only for his indecision to cost him, when he cut the ball back for Craig McAllister instead of shooting, but his pass was easily cut out. Ishmael Welsh, on the left wing, was Rovers' danger man, but he was generally ably marshalled by James Clarke. It was through the centre that Rovers looked most likely to threaten, as debutant Jamie Hand and Adam Murray seemed unsure where each other was supposed to be, but Luke Foster was, as ever, imperious at the back, and Billy Turley was sure and confident whenever crosses were put across.

Less than a minute into the second half United should have been given a glorious opportunity to take the lead, when John Hardiker rugby tackled Richards to the ground inside the Rovers penalty area. However, there is a little know law of the game that penalises players who are fouled in this manner, and so the free kick was, quite rightly, given against Richards, much to the amusement of the Oxford fans and players. There followed a brief spell of Forest Green pressure, when they forced a succession of corners, before the Yellows (playing in blue) reasserted their dominance. Anaclet, who was having a better game than of late, forced a fine one-handed save from Burton with a curling shot with the outside of his right foot. Richards and McAllister both went close, while at the other end Oxford were again grateful to Foster and Barry Quinn for some last-ditch defending to maintain parity. Deep into injury time Matt Green broke clear and forced Burton into a final match-saving stop.

Patterson will have been disappointed that United's superiority wasn't converted into goals and points, but will also have been very pleased with the way that his side is shaping up, especially with the way that they press the opposition, from the front pair right through the side. Patto made three changes to the last league side he sent out, with Clarke replacing Matt Day at right back, Hand coming into central midfield in place of Eddie Hutchinson, and McAllister resuming his former Woking partnership up front with Richards. With 18 minutes to go Anaclet, who was clearly tiring, was replaced by Ryan Semple, making his Oxford debut. It took some time before Semple saw the ball, but when he did he immediately set up a decent chance for Green, who had replaced McAllister four minutes after Semple's introduction.

Today's referee was