George Dugdale

Oxford United 2 Torquay United 2

Oxford United were left frustrated by a 90th minute goal for the second time in four days as Taiwo Atieno's late strike denied the home side a vital victory in the race for a play-off spot. United had fallen behind to Rene Howe's first half strike, but goals from Adam Chapman and Cristian Montano looked to have given Oxford the points, before Atieno's long-range effort.

With Michael Duberry suspended and Peter Leven injured following the defeat at Northampton, Harry Worley and Andy Whing returned to the starting line-up. James Constable replaced Scott Rendell at the middle of a front three, whilst Oli Johnson returned to the bench after injury.

The home side started the game brightly, with Asa Hall's curling effort being tipped over by Bobby Olejnik in the Torquay United goal. Ryan Clarke had to be alert to keep Howe out, before Montano showed his intentions with a rasping long-range drive that fizzed narrowly over the crossbar.

The game was surprisingly open, but the visitors were gifted the lead after 17 minutes. Worley chased back towards his own goal but left his pass to Clarke short under pressure from Howe. The large striker advanced on goal before sliding the ball under Clarke to open the scoring.

Oxford were knocked from their stride and could have found themselves two down before the break. Howe had a strike ruled out for offside, before Eunan O'Kane somehow fired over the bar when a lose ball bounced to him in the penalty area.

Torquay were showing why they are in the race for an automatic promotion spot, stroking the ball around nicely. Howe provided a physical focal point, but O'Kane and Ian Morris provided intelligent play between the lines to keep Oxford's defence on their toes.

Despite this, Oxford began to settle back into the game and could have been level before the interval. Olejnik's fumble nearly opened the door for United's attackers, before the lively Dean Morgan fired narrowly wide.

Chris Wilder replaced the subdued Constable with Scott Rendell at the break as Oxford looked to bring their wide men into the game. The damage could have been greater two minutes into the second half, however, as a missed header allowed Howe to race in on goal again. The striker rounded Clarke, but was denied a second goal by Worley's desperate goal-line clearance. When the ball was finally slotted home by O'Kane, United were saved by the linesman's flag.

This acted as the wake-up call the home side required and the increasingly influential Chapman almost provided the equaliser. Montano's quick free-kick was flicked into the path of the onrushing midfielder by Asa Hall, only for Chapman to be denied by a smart save. As the ball bounced out to Hall, only the outstretched leg of Brian Saah prevented Oxford from pulling level.

It wouldn't be long before Oxford's dominance was rewarded, however. Liam Davis' volley was deflected wide, allowing Adam Chapman to curl a corner goalwards. Under pressure from Rendell, Olejnik flapped and floundered, allowing the ball to soar into the top corner. The away defeat at Luton feels like a long time ago, but some of the demons from that night have now been exorcised.

United were rampant, the crowd were vociferous and the dominance was soon turned into a lead. Damian Batt showed his pace to reach a through-ball and delivered the perfect ball into the penalty area on the slide. Montano's eyes lit up as the ball came in and the West Ham loanee was soon wheeling away in celebration after powering his header into the net at the near post.

Further opportunities came and went as Torquay flung their bodies in front of shots to stay in the game, before Oxford missed the perfect opportunity to kill the game. Montano was released on the right flank, but overhit a cross to Rendell who was lurking in the middle.

Strangely, the momentum was lost as Torquay were reduced to ten men. Morris had already been booked before a late challenge caught Andy Whing. Referee Dean Mohareb was left with no choice but to display a second yellow card.

The change in numbers seemed to interrupt the home side's tempo and the intensity that had been a key feature of the second half performance was lost as the players looked to see the game out. Torquay are not second due to a lack of spirit and began to press as the game entered the latter stages. Clarke had been struggling with injury throughout the second half, with various defenders being asked to take on goal-kick duties, and Torquay capitalised on this in the final minute of the game. United had plenty of opportunities to clear the ball, but Atieno took his opportunity to bend the ball goalwards. Clarke was unable to get enough on the ball to push it over the bar and Oxford saw another two points slip away at home.

As with Friday night's defeat in Northampton, this was a disappointing end to a fine second half performance. Jake Wright was in fine form at the back, Batt and Davis were surging forward from the back and Whing was winning the midfield battle single-handedly. Chapman's influence on Football League fixtures is increasing by the minute and Hall's ability to link midfield and attack were proving useful. Montano has added goals to his promise, whilst Morgan is a totally different figure to the one substituted at Cheltenham Town a few weeks ago. Rendell's hold-up play provided the spark for a vastly improved second half performance.

Two defensive errors provided Torquay with a point that they will happily take back to the south-west. Torquay United are a good team, as reflected by their position in the league table. However, they were comprehensively outplayed (with eleven men) in the second half by an Oxford side who have shown that they can compete with the best sides in this division in a head-to-head contest. However, it is dropped points such as these that have provided such frustration over the season.

Oxford remain in a play-off position and have four matches left in which to stay there. If this team can produce their second half performance from today in those fixtures whilst cutting out the defensive errors that have crept into their game recently, they will have every chance of maintaining a place in the top seven.

Mr Mohareb Mr Mohareb was a refreshing change amongst Football League referees, allowing the game to flow. It is difficult to comment on how accurate his linesmen were in making key offside decisions without consulting video highlights, but the entertaining nature of the game owes some thanks to the referee's willingness to allow physical contact. He got the red card decision correct, whilst making very few obvious errors. Andy Whing was booked for his reaction to Morris' tackle, whilst Lee Mansell was booked for Torquay.

This point sees Oxford remain in seventh place in the table on goal difference, despite Crewe's 3-0 home victory over Bristol Rovers. Swindon moved a step closer to promotion after Lee Holmes' strike provided victory over Northampton Town, whilst Shrewsbury's 1-0 win over Bradford City keeps them in third. Crawley Town began life without Steve Evans with a 2-1 victory over Barnet, whilst Southend beat AFC Wimbledon 2-0. Evans' new club Rotherham United beat Cheltenham Town 1-0 to keep Chris Wilder's side in the play-offs. Gillingham's inconsistent form continued with a surprise 2-1 home defeat to Dagenham & Redbridge. At the other end of the table, Hereford and Macclesfield remain in the relegation zone after defeats at Accrington and Port Vale respectively. Plymouth Argyle moved closer to safety after victory against Aldershot, while Burton Albion beat Morecambe 3-2 at home.