Oxford United v Portsmouth – Tuesday 30th January 2024
Following its postponement in November due to our international call ups, Pompey’s League One match at Oxford United’s Kassam Stadium was finally re-arranged for the final Tuesday night in January.
Fresh from our win at Port Vale on Saturday, Pompey remained two points clear at the top of League One on 59 points and 10 points clear of tonight’s hosts who have a game in hand on us.
This season it is one of Pompey’s nearest away games for me in Birmingham, in fact the 82 mile trip makes it near equal distant for me and the majority of our fans travelling up from Portsmouth.
Like Saturday’s trip to Vale Park, I travelled again with Lee. But this time it was his turn to drive as we embarked on the M40/A34 not long after 4pm to hopefully beat the rush hour.
It was Lee’s maiden visit to Oxford United whilst I have been on three previous occasions. Once to their old Manor Ground where we lost 2-1 in the original Division Two in March 1992 after Darren Anderton put us in front.
Then twice at the Kassam Stadium in League One. Firstly, in January 2019 when a superb overhead kick by Brett Pitman couldn’t prevent a 2-1 defeat. Then in midweek last April, Marlon Pack’s blockbuster free kick was cancelled out in a match that finished 1-1.
The Kassam Stadium is a modern out of town purpose built stadium that opened in 2001 in the Blackbird Leys area, 4 miles south east of the city centre. It has a decent sized car park but was already pretty full when we arrived shortly after half 5, but Lee managed to find a space.
In the car park, there is an impressive statue of an Ox which of course is the city’s coat of arms and football club’s badge.
For those who remember their former Manor Ground in Headington, it was a fairly small ground hemmed in by houses and the narrow Cuckoo Lane behind the open away terrace, so realistically the club had to move.
But arguably the biggest flip side is that the Kassam is an hour and a halfwalk from the city centre. There is a bus service linking the stadium to the city centre that me and a mate of mine from Brum used last season when we saw the sights of the quintessential English city, but that takes close to an hour. So if you don’t drive to the stadium, a train and taxi is probably your best option.
There are also a distinct lack of pubs in close proximity, although I heard some other Northern Blues were going to the Catherine Wheel in Sandford-On-Thames which is just under a mile away. There is an adjacent leisure complex which includes a bowling alley, sports bar, restaurant chain and a hotel.
Lee and I briefly wondered into the Hollywood bowl facility and it wasn’t long before we started reminiscing about the former Arundel Street one in Portsmouth. But for me last season, the stand out attraction at this complex is the lunar themed crazy golf course. However, as pictured below, this is now sadly closed on a Tuesday evening.
Next door to Gravitee is J’S Sports Bar ironically named the 4th Stand which I will elaborate on later.
The 4th Stand bar goes back a long way and around a corner with plenty of Pool tables (although covered over with it being a matchday), TV screens and some framed Oxford United shirts.
We decided to stay here even though we would only have the one drink as Lee was driving. Then what should we hear playing but Mike Oldfield’s Portsmouth. Either there was a jukebox our fans made themselves feel at home with, or it was part of the Oxonian hospitality?
After chatting to a couple of other Pompey fans and watching part of the Mali v Bukina Faso game from the African Cup of Nations, it was now 7:15ish as we made our way over to the ground.
On arrival, I bought a match day programme which was a slight ouch at £4.00 then we grabbed a pre-match pie and tea before taking our seats. As pictured below, the away fans are allocated in part of the large single tiered North Stand on the side of the pitch.
Opposite us is the two-tiered main stand where Oxford’s list of honours can be seen. Most notably their highly impressive consecutive (what is now) League One and Championship titles in the 80s accomplished under a mutual managerial hero of both ourselves and The U’s – the late great Jim Smith. Then the League Cup the following season, where ironically Oxford beat Smith’s QPR side – who he went on the manage) in the final.
On the left is their home end (East Stand), which if I heard the PA announcer correctly, is AKA the (Bald Eagle himself again) Jim Smith stand.
On three sides, it is a nicely designed 12.5k stadium. But to our right behind the goal is the reason for J’S Sports Bar ironic name I alluded to earlier, the well-known missing 4th stand. Other than wanting space for a large car park, why there was never a 4th stand built at a new purpose-built stadium I do not know.
But any plans to fill this gap seem even less likely as Oxford’s lease to play at the Kassam expires in two years time. Ambitious plans have been unveiled on the club’s website this season for a new 16k stadium/sports and entertainment complex in Kidlington 6 miles north of the city and not far from Oxford airport.
They look really impressive and I am a fan of their sustainability model. Plus being north of their city, it makes it that much nearer for me to get to from the second city.
Our fans were in good voice ahead of the 7:45pm kick off, but just before the teams came out we observed a minutes applause. Former Oxford full-back from the mid-Noughties Stuart Gray tragically passed away with cancer aged just 50 on Saturday.
John Mousinho made just one change from the Port Vale win, captain Marlon Park replaced Tom Lowery in midfield. However, only half an hour or so in, Lowery would come off the bench to replace the injured Joe Morrell.
As the match got under way in truth it was a first half with no clear-cut chances for either side. We seemed to make a lot of passes in the middle with new loan signing Peart-Harris continuing to look great on the ball with some good attacking play.
Just as the game looked like heading for a stalemate at half time, it was the hosts who got the vital breakthrough. After winning the ball, Marcus McGuane put fellow Oxford midfielder Tyler Goodrham through and his superb low shot into the corner from the edge of the D gave Will Norris no chance as we went in a goal down at the break.
HT: Oxford United 1-0 Pompey
We needed to be far more attacking in the 2nd half against an Oxford side who I thought so far looked quite solid defensively. At the interval they were forced into making a change in goal as former Pompey keeper Simon Eastwood was brought on for the injured Jamie Cumming.
Pompey then had chances to equalise with a header from Abu Kamara that Eastwood gathered, then a shot from Lowery which went just over. But a huge tactical substitution was made by John Mousinho on 62 minutes when midfielder Terry Devlin made way for new signing and striker Calum Lang tocome off the bench for his debut.
Then seven minutes later we were on level terms when Kamara’s run into the box and to the by line was cut back in for Lang but his shot was blocked by Eastwood to Colby Bishop, then in a desperate scramble of Eastwood trying to clear and Bishop trying to force it home, it was Bishop who finally got it over the line to relief of our away fans towards that end of the stand.
Oxford twice had chances though to re-take the lead when Goodrham almost got his second of the night but drilled his shot into the ground which then deflected off Kamara and the over the bar.
Then the home side were unhappy having a penalty appeal waved away after Goodrham went to ground as The U’s manager Des Buckingham received a booking for his protestation.
Then on 80 minutes, a moment of brilliance.
Pack played a great ball over the top to debutant Lang who brought the ball down superbly with his back to goal, turned into space past two defenders around him before flicking it into the bottom right corner to put us 2-1 ahead as wild celebrations amongst the fans and players ensued.
A special moment for Lang especially as it was just days after leaving Wigan Athletic where he been at since he was 14 years.
Perhaps then with 10 minutes to go we might see only our 3rd league win away win to The U’s since 1981? But this is Pompey v Oxford and who can forget that last minute of both THE Alan Biley game in 84-85 and dare I say it the 5-5 draw at their old ground in 92-93?
On 90 minutes a good ball found Oxford’s Mark Harris who turned Ryler Towler (brought on just minutes earlier to replace Connor Ogilvie) and Harris’ shot forced a fine low save by Norris only for the ball to agonisingly loop up for midfielder James Henry to head home right on the line.
It’s always sickening to drop two points with a last gasp equaliser, but with 7 minutes added on, there were end to end attacks and the occasional half chance as both sides knew what a massive 3 points this would be. But eventually it finished 2-2.
FT: Oxford United 2-2 Pompey
Att: 8,864 (1,485 Pompey fans)
So a draw it is then as we reach 60 points and a 3 point lead at the top going into February. Whilst Oxford’s late leveller moves them back into 6th place and one point ahead of Stevenage.
On reflection, a point from a frenetic promotion ‘six-pointer’ away from home is fine per se, but we could rue letting 2 late points slip as Bolton Wanderers now have three games in hand with a better goal difference to us.
Plus if Peterborough United win and draw their two games in hand, we would drop to 3rd position on goal difference as things stand. But we still have to play those 2 sides as well as Derby County, Barnsley and Blackpool, so all kinds of scenarios could happen in our final 16 games.
On to Saturday then we welcome Northampton Town to Fratton Park with our visitors 9th in the table and 10 points off the play offs with a game in hand over Oxford. The previous meeting between both sides at Fratton Park was a League One Tuesday night match in October 2020 when Pompey won 4-0. Whilst the Cobblers haven’t tasted victory in PO4 since their 2-1 win on the final day of the 2015-16 season in League Two. PUP PPU.
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