Ebbsfleet United 1 Oxford United 1

A last-minute equaliser from substitute Levi Reid earned ten-men Oxford a well-deserved draw on a hot day at Northfleet this afternoon. United were up against it throughout the second half after Luke Foster was harshly sent off at the end of the first half. This was Foster's second straight red of the season, following his dismissal at Wrexham, and as a result he will be suspended for the next four games.

Oxford had the first chance, but Jamie Guy's chip went straight into Lance Cronin's arms. There was a moment of concern when Barry Quinn and Chris Willmott banged their heads together, but both players were eventually fit to continue. Ebbsfleet then came back into the game, and Jake Cole was called on to make a couple of decent saves. While the home side played some decent football, Oxford, using a new 3-5-2 formation, were still too prone to the hoof, where the simple pass might have been more sensible. There was a good through ball from James Clarke that sent Yemi Odubade free, but he shot wide with just Cronin to beat. Then, in the final minute of the half, Foster challenged Craig Stone, who made a meal of the tackle, and the referee showed Foster the red card.

Ten minutes into the second half Oxford were punished for some slack marking when Mark Ricketts crossed for unmarked former Us-triallist Michael Gash to head easily home. Cole was again called on to make a save or two, while at the other end Willmott went close with a header and James Constable's powerful shot was straight at Cronin. As the game moved into injury time, Chris Carruthers' cross was met on the volley by Reid, 12 yards out, to earn United an unlikely point, their first on the road.

Darren Patterson made changes to personnel as well as formation. Clarke was preferred to Matt Day, while United moved to a five-man midfield, with Clarke and Carruthers playing as wingbacks and a three-man defence of Willmott, Quinn, and Foster. Joe Burnell came back into the side following his ankle injury, with Adam Murray and Eddie Hutchinson completing the midfield. Yemi and Guy were the front pair, with Constable on the bench. Just before the hour Patterson freshened things up by bringing on Constable and Lewis Haldane for Yemi and Guy, and four minutes later Reid replaced Burnell.

Today's excuse for a referee was Mike Bull, taking charge of his first, and hopefully last, Oxford game. In addition to sending off Foster, he also showed yellow cards to Clarke and Willmott. The attendance was 1,842, of whom 489 were supporting the right team.

The point takes United up to 17th, while Ebbsfleet are 12th. The Conference's new leaders are Forest Green Rovers, who won 1-0 at 16th-placed Histon. Mansfield Town are now second after they won 1-0 against fourth-bottom Grays Athletic, while Cambridge United's 2-2 draw at 7th-placed Weymouth leaves them third. Former leaders Salisbury City have dropped to fourth after they were beaten 4-1 at home by fifth-placed Wrexham, for whom Jefferson Louis scored twice. [@news]2357[/@news][@opponent]ebbsfleet united[/@opponent]

Woking remain bottom after losing 1-0 at ninth-placed Kettering Town, with Lewes one place above them after they went down 5-2 at sixth-placed Burton Albion. Lewes were leading 2-1 at one stage, with Michael Standing giving them the lead from the penalty spot. United's opponents on Tuesday, Northwich Victoria, are third bottom after they lost 5-2 at eighth-placed Crawley Town. Jamie Cook scored twice and Simon Weatherstone once for Crawley, while Lee Steele was one of Northwich's scorers. Stevenage Borough's first win of the season lifted them to 20th, after they beat Barrow 3-1 at Holker Street to leave the Cumbrians 10th. Eastbourne Borough beat 19th-placed Altrincham 1-0, while Kidderminster Harriers beat Rushden & Diamonds 2-1.