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Oxford United F.C.
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- For the Northern Irish football club, see Oxford United Stars F.C.
Oxford United Football Club is an English association football team who play in the Conference National. The club has been a non-league side since relegation from League Two in 2005–06.
The club's chairman is Kelvin Thomas and the first team is currently managed by Chris Wilder. Its home ground is the Kassam Stadium in Oxford with a capacity of 12,500. The club moved to the stadium in 2001 after leaving the Manor Ground, which was its home for 76 years.
Oxford United joined the Football League in 1962 after winning the Southern Football League, reaching the Second Division in 1968.
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Encyclopedia
- For the Northern Irish football club, see Oxford United Stars F.C.
Oxford United Football Club is an English association football team who play in the Conference National. The club has been a non-league side since relegation from League Two in 2005–06.
The club's chairman is Kelvin Thomas and the first team is currently managed by Chris Wilder. Its home ground is the Kassam Stadium in Oxford with a capacity of 12,500. The club moved to the stadium in 2001 after leaving the Manor Ground, which was its home for 76 years.
Oxford United joined the Football League in 1962 after winning the Southern Football League, reaching the Second Division in 1968. After relegation in 1976, between 1984 and 1986 the club earned successive promotions into the First Division, and also won the League Cup. Oxford was unable to enter the 1987 UEFA Cup because of the UEFA ban on English clubs in European competitions. Relegation from the top flight in 1988 began an 18-year decline which saw the club relegated to the Conference in 2006. This was the first time in the history of English football that a team which had previously won a major trophy was relegated from the Football League.
History
Headington United
Oxford United was formed as amateur club Headington in 1893, adding the suffix United the following year. It was created by Rev John Scott-Tucker, the vicar at Saint Andrew's church in Old Headington, and a local doctor named Robert Hitchings. A football team was a way for the cricketers of Headington Cricket Club to maintain their fitness during the winter break. The first game played was against Cowley Barracks. Headington had no regular home until 1913, when they were able to purchase Wootten's Field on London Road, but this was redeveloped in 1920. A permanent home was finally found in 1926, when they purchased the Manor Ground site on London Road. The facility was used as a cricket pitch in the summer, and a football pitch in the winter, until the cricketers moved out during the 1940s. in 1899, six years after their formation, Headington United joined the Oxfordshire District League Second Division, where they would compete until the outbreak of World War One. The Second Division was renamed the Oxfordshire Junior League after the resumption of football in 1919 and in 1921 the club were admitted into the Oxon Senior League. The first season included a 9–0 victory, with 8 goals coming from P.Drewitt. This is the only time to date that this many goals has been scored by a single Oxford player in a first-team match. At this time a small rivalry existed with Cowley F.C., who were based a few miles south of Headington. During a league game on May Day, the referee gave two penalties to Cowley; supporters broke past security and players, resulting in the referee being 'freely baited'. The first FA Cup tie played was in 1931, against Hounslow F.C. in the Preliminary Round, ending in an 8–2 defeat for Headington. The team spent two seasons in the Spartan League in the late 1940s, finishing fifth and fourth respectively.
A move into professional football was first considered during the second season. Vic Couling, the president at the time, had applied for Headington to become a member of a new Second Division in the Southern League. Other teams that applied included Weymouth, Kettering Town and future league side Cambridge United. Despite the plans being postponed, the First Division was going to be expanded by two clubs; Weymouth and Headington were elected. It was later discovered that Llanelli had just one fewer vote than Headington. They played their first season in the Southern League in 1949, the same year they turned professional. Former First Division forward Harry Thompson was hired as manager. The club installed floodlights in 1950, the first professional club in Britain to do so, and the first floodlit game was held on 18 December against Banbury Spencer. Headington United first started wearing yellow as the colour for their home shirt, changing from orange and blue, in the 1957–58 season. The reason for the change is unknown. In 1960, Headington United was renamed Oxford United in order to give the club a higher profile.
Promotion and Robert Maxwell takeover
Two years later, in 1962, the club won the Southern League title for the second successive season and was elected to the Football League Fourth Division, occupying the vacant place left by bankrupt Accrington Stanley. Two successive eighteenth place finishes followed, before promotion to the Third Division was achieved in 1965. A year before the promotion, they became the first Fourth Division club to reach the sixth round of the FA Cup, but have not progressed that far in the competition since. Oxford won the Third Division title in 1967–68, their sixth season as a league club, but after eight years of relative stability the club was relegated from the Second Division in 1975–76.
In 1982, as a Third Division side, Oxford United was facing closure due to costs owed to Barclays Bank, but were rescued when businessman Robert Maxwell completed a takeover of the club. In March 1983, Maxwell proposed to merge United with neighbours Reading to form a single club called the Thames Valley Royals, to play at Didcot. Jim Smith would have managed the club with Reading boss Maurice Evans becoming his assistant. The merger was called off as a result of fans of both clubs protesting against the decision and the Reading chairman stepping down to be replaced by an opponent of the merger. Maxwell also threatened to fold the club if the merger did not go through.
Oxford won the Third Division title in 1984 under the management of Jim Smith, who also guided them to the Second Division title the following year. This meant that Oxford United would be playing First Division football in the 1985–86 season, 23 years after joining the Football League. Smith moved to Queens Park Rangers shortly after the promotion success, and made way for chief scout Maurice Evans, who, several seasons earlier, had won the Fourth Division title with Reading.
Oxford at the top
Oxford United finished eighteenth in the 1985–86 First Division campaign, avoiding relegation on the last day of the season. They also won the Football League Cup, known at the time as the Milk Cup under a sponsorship deal, beating Queens Park Rangers 30 in the final at Wembley. They would have qualified for the UEFA Cup the following season had it not been for the ban on English teams that had arisen from the previous year's Heysel Stadium disaster.
After beating fellow First Division side Aston Villa in the semi-final 4–3 on aggregate, Oxford faced Queens Park Rangers in the final, which was held at Wembley Stadium on 20 April 1986. The final result was 3–0 with goals from Trevor Hebberd, Jeremy Charles and Ray Houghton. After the match, manager Maurice Evans asked long-serving physiotherapist, 72-year-old Ken Fish, to collect a winner's medal instead of himself. It was the last time the League Cup was played under the name 'Milk Cup'.
1986–87 saw Oxford United survive another relegation battle and stay in the First Division. Robert Maxwell resigned as chairman in May 1987 to take over at Derby County, handing the club to his son Kevin. Maurice Evans was sacked in March 1988 with Oxford bottom of the First Division and destined for relegation after three years in the top flight.
Life in the second tier
Before relegation was confirmed, former Liverpool defender Mark Lawrenson was named as Oxford's new manager. However, he was sacked three months into the 1988–89 Second Division campaign after a dispute with the chairman over the £1 million sale of striker Dean Saunders to Derby County; Derby were owned by Robert Maxwell, father of the then Oxford United chairman, Kevin Maxwell. Following Robert Maxwell's death in 1991, his personal estate including the club, became insolvent. After a long search for a new owner, Robin Herd, co-owner of the March Racing Team, took control. Brian Horton was named as Oxford's new manager, and remained in charge until September 1993 when he was lured away to Manchester City in the recently formed FA Premier League. Oxford, now a side in the new Football League Division One, briefly restored Maurice Evans to the manager's seat before turning to Bristol City manager Denis Smith. By the time he was hired, Oxford was deep in relegation trouble. Despite Smith's efforts, Oxford slid into Division Two at the end of the 1993–94 season.
Promotion success in Division Two
Denis Smith set about restoring Oxford United to the First Division, and brought in two strikers who were experienced in the top division — Southampton's Paul Moody and Nottingham Forest's Nigel Jemson. Oxford finished mid-table in 1994–95, after heading the table at Christmas, but finished runners-up to near neighbours Swindon Town in 1995–96 and regained their place in Division One. In June 1995, Oxford United's board of directors had unveiled plans for a new 16,000-seat stadium at Minchery Farm to replace the dilapidated Manor Ground. The club had hoped to move into the new stadium near the Blackbird Leys housing estate by the start of the 1998–99 season, but construction was suspended during the 1997–98 season because of £13 million debts, which almost bankrupted the club.
The 1996–97 season saw Oxford looking hopeful of gaining promotion to the Premier League, but the squad lacked the strength to make this form consistent and they finished seventeenth, following the sale of star defender Matt Elliott. Despite Smith's departure to West Bromwich Albion in December 1997, United finished eleventh in the 1997–98 final table of Division One under his successor Malcolm Shotton, who had been assistant manager of the Barnsley side which had recently gained promotion to the Premier League. Shotton had also been Oxford's captain during the glory years of the mid-1980s. During October and November 1998 the backroom staff at the club went unpaid, due to United's financial situation, and supporters rallied round, delivering food parcels to the ground. Supporters set up a pressure group called Fighting for Oxford United's Life (FOUL), which began to publicise the club's plight through a series of meetings and events. Chairman Robin Herd had effectively given up on the club, and in April 1999 Firoz Kassam bought Herd's 89.9% controlling interest in Oxford United for £1, with which he also inherited the club's estimated £15 million debt. Kassam reduced £9 million of the debt to £900,000 by virtue of a Company Voluntary Arrangement, by which unsecured creditors who were owed over £1,000 were reimbursed with 10p for every pound they were owed. Secured creditors were paid off when Kassam sold the Manor to another of his Firoka companies for £6 million. Kassam set about completing the unfinished stadium, gaining planning permission for a bowling alley, a multiplex cinema, and a hotel, among other things, following a series of legal battles which were eventually all settled.
Oxford's poor form continued into the 1999–00 season, forcing Shotton to resign in late October with the club deep in relegation trouble. However the team's form improved and they finished twentieth in the Division Two final table, one place clear of relegation. After the 2000–01 campaign, Oxford was relegated back to the basement division of the league after a 35-year absence, with 100 goals conceded. They suffered 33 league defeats, the second-highest number of league defeats ever endured by a league club in a single season.
Division Three years
Oxford began the 2001–02 season with a new stadium and a new manager. They finally completed their relocation to the Kassam Stadium after six years of speculation. Former Liverpool and England defender Mark Wright was given the manager's job, but resigned in late November after being accused of making racist remarks to referee Joe Ross. Wright's successor Ian Atkins was unable to make much of a difference and Oxford finished the Division Three campaign in 21st place, their lowest-ever league position, although there was never any real threat of them losing their league status.
Oxford had a more successful season in 2002–03, spending most of the year in either the automatic promotion or playoff places. But defeat in their final game of the season meant an eighth-place finish, not even enough for a playoff place.
A good start to the 2003–04 season saw Oxford top of the table at the end of November. However, manager Ian Atkins was sacked in March after agreeing to take charge at rivals Bristol Rovers, and under his successor Graham Rix, the club fell to ninth place in the final table.
Relegation to the Conference
Rix was sacked the following November, with Oxford in the bottom half of Football League Two, known as the Coca-Cola League Two for sponsorship reasons. Oxford replaced him with the Argentine Ramσn Dνaz, who was unable to secure anything higher than a mid-table finish. Diaz and his team of assistants left the club at the beginning of May 2005, with ex-England midfielder and former West Bromwich Albion, Rushden and Oldham manager Brian Talbot immediately signed on a two-year contract as the replacement. Apart from a brief winning streak in September which saw United reach eighth in the table, Talbot found little success and was sacked in March 2006 with the club in 22nd place. He was replaced by youth team coach Darren Patterson.
On 21 March 2006, Firoz Kassam sold the club for approximately £2 million (including the club's debts) to Florida-based businessman Nick Merry, who had played for United's youth team in the mid-1970s. Merry immediately initiated changes to the upper hierarchy of the club. Jim Smith, one of the club's most successful managers, returned to the helm bringing in five new players on his first day in charge.
Smith was unable to prevent relegation in the 2005–06 season. After 44 successive years in English league football, Oxford was relegated to the Conference National from League Two after finishing in 23rd place, becoming the first former winners of a major trophy to be relegated from the league. Coincidentally, Accrington Stanley, the side who went bankrupt in 1962 allowing United to be elected to the League, were one of the two teams promoted into League Two.
Life in the Conference
Jim Smith was retained as manager for 200607. The season started positively for Oxford, with 14 wins and 8 draws from their opening 25 games. However, this was followed by a run of eleven league games without a win from November, which saw them drop into second place just after Christmas, a position in which they remained until the end of the season. On Boxing Day 2006 a crowd of 11,065 watched United draw 0–0 with Woking at the Kassam Stadium, the largest-ever attendance for a Football Conference match (excluding playoffs). They qualified for the playoffs by coming second, facing Exeter City in the playoff semi-finals. After winning 1–0 in the first leg at Exeter, Oxford lost the second leg 2–1 and after extra time lost 4–3 on penalties, thus failing in their attempt to return to the Football League at the first attempt.
On 9 November 2007, Jim Smith resigned as manager and first team coach Darren Patterson was named as the new manager. Oxford spent most of the 200708 season in mid-table, though a run of 9 wins in their last 11 games saw them finish in 9th place, 10 points outside the playoff places. On 2 October 2008, Nick Merry stepped down as chairman to be replaced by Kelvin Thomas. Thomas had been part of the management team at the time of the takeover, but moved to be with his family in Florida soon afterwards. After a poor run of form, Patterson was sacked on 30 November 2008, just over a year after he had become manager, and was replaced by former Halifax Town manager Chris Wilder.
Stadiums
Oxford United had no regular home until 1913, when they were able to purchase Wootten's Field on London Road. However, this was redeveloped in 1920 before a stadium could be built. Having purchused a new site, the club played at the Manor Ground between 1926 and 2001, before moving to the Kassam Stadium. The ground hosted United's record crowd of 22,750 against Preston North End in an FA Cup sixth round match on 29 February 1964. The four stands were named after the roads they were positioned on: Beech Road, London Road, Cuckoo Lane and Osler Road. In the 1990s, the Taylor Report was published calling for the improvement of football stadiums. The Manor Ground's terracing was becoming redundant and redeveloping the ground was too costly, so the club decided to move to a purpose-built all-seater stadium on the outskirts of the city, costing in the region of £15 million. Construction work began in the early part of 1997, but was suspended later that year due to the club's financial problems. Construction of the new stadium resumed in 1999 following a takeover deal and Oxford moved there in 2001. The last league match at the Manor on 1 May 2001 saw a 1–1 draw with Port Vale. The site was sold for £12 million and the stadium was later demolished. The land is now occupied by a private hospital.
Since 2001, Oxford United has played at the Kassam Stadium. The all-seater stadium has a capacity of 12,500 and is unique in the Conference National in having only three stands; when first planned in 1995 it was originally going to have a 16,000-seat capacity, but by the time the stadium opened Oxford was playing in a lower division, so the smaller capacity was deemed adequate. Construction of the fourth stand is not expected to take place for several years, although foundations have already been put in place.
The record attendance is 12,243, which was achieved in the final game of the 200506 season, when a defeat against Leyton Orient condemned them to relegation from the Football League. The stadium has also hosted Rugby Union matches, an Under-17 international football tournament and a music concert.
Crest and colours
The crest reflects the name and history of the city. Oxford was originally a market town situated near to a ford on the River Isis, which was used by cattle. The club crest depicts an ox above a representation of a ford to symbolise the location.
The shape and design of the crest has changed numerous times since it was first produced. When playing as Headington and during the early years of Oxford United, the crest included a full ox crossing the ford, as well as the initials H.U.F.C. (pre-1962) or the name Oxford United (post name-change). Between 1972 and 1980, the crest became circular, showing just the ox's head on a yellow and black background. The words 'Oxford United Football Club' were placed around the ox. For the next 17 years, the crest was simply the ox's head coloured blue, with various combinations of wording surrounding it. For example in the 1987–88 season, the wording 25th Anniversary was placed under the crest. In 1996, the crest had a shield shape and contained the ox's head over the ford, on a yellow background. This version was retained until the move to the Kassam Stadium in 2001, when club steward Rob Alderman designed the current version. It has a similar design to the preceding crest, but the ox and ford are contained in a circle with a yellow background, with the remainder of the crest being coloured blue.
While playing as Headington United, orange and blue striped shirts were worn with navy shorts and socks. The design of the shirt changed regularly, with the stripes being changed every few seasons. After joining the Southern League, the blue stripes were lost for good and a lighter shade of orange used for the shirt. The yellow kit was first worn during the 1957–58 season, with black shorts and yellow socks. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, the black shorts were first replaced with yellow ones, and then with light blue shorts. Since the early 1990s, the strip has been composed of the yellow shirt and navy coloured shorts and socks. A large variety of away kits have been used over the years, ranging from red and black stripes on the shirts, to a fully white kit.
The first sponsor to appear on the shirt was Sunday Journal, a local newspaper, in 1982. Between 1983 and 1985, there were three sponsors; BPCC, Pergamon and the Sunday People. Following those were Wang Laboratories (1985 to 1989), Pergamon (1989 to 1991), Unipart (1991 to 2000) and Domino (2000 to 2001). Buildbase have been the official sponsor since the move to the Kassam Stadium in 2001 and are signed up until the end of the 2009–10 season.
Supporters and rivals
Oxford United is the best supported club in the Conference National and has had the largest average attendance every year since joining the league. Oxford has a number of independent supporters' clubs and groups such as OxVox (the Oxford United Supporters' Trust) with a current membership of over 400, and the Oxford United Exiles. The club itself also runs a Juniors club, aimed at younger fans and offering a number of bonuses to its members such as birthday cards and a free T-shirt. The official matchday programme for home games costs £3 and was voted best Blue Square Premier Programme of the Year for the 200708 season. A fanzine is also available called 'Oxtales', priced £1. A number of songs are sung during home games, such as Yellow Submarine (with adapted lyrics) and songs relating to the old Manor Ground. However, on occasions the chants became too abusive and a 'cut it out campaign' was introduced to try and stop such chants.
There are a number of celebrity supporters such as Richard Branson and Timmy Mallett. The club's mascot is Ollie the Ox.
In a 2003 survey of football fans, Oxford's main rivals were Swindon Town, with Reading and Wycombe Wanderers seen as other rivals. The rivalry with Swindon stems from the clubs' close proximity, as well as the fact they have played each other 53 times since 1962. During the height of football hooliganism, trouble flared up between the sets of fans. In 1998, 19 Swindon supporters were arrested during a match at the County Ground, while in 2002 there was an incident between supporters after Oxford fans returned from an away fixture. Oxford fans use nicknames when talking about Swindon such as moonraker, in reference to the myth that they tried to rake the reflection of the moon out of a pond. The rivalry with Reading was heightened during the chairmanship of Robert Maxwell, due to his desire to merge the two clubs. This was met with strong opposition from both sets of fans, with United supporters staging a 'sit-in' on the pitch before a game against Wigan in protest. Despite being the second team in the city, there is less rivalry with Oxford City due to their lower position in the pyramid system (there has been no competitive matches between the two since 1959).
Current squad
- As of 31 January 2009.
Notable players
For more details on this topic, see List of Oxford United F.C. players.
Club officials
Oxford United football club
- Chairman: Kelvin Thomas
- Directors: Jim Smith and Nick Merry
- General Manager & Club Secretary: Mick Brown
Coaching and Medical Staff
- Manager & First Team Coach: Chris Wilder
- Assistant Manager & Youth Team Coach: Mickey Lewis
- Goalkeeping Coach: Alan Hodgkinson
- Fitness Coach: Dave Wates
Managerial history
Below is a list of Oxford United managers since Harry Thompson's appointment in 1949 to the present day.
| Name | Dates | Achievements | Games | Win % | Notes |
|---|
Harry Thompson | August 1949 December 1958 | Southern League Champions (1953);
Southern League runners up (1954);
Southern League Cup Winners (1953,1954) | 466 | 47.20 | | | Arthur Turner | January 1959 February 1969 | Southern League runners up (1960);
Southern League Champions (1961,1962);
Fourth Division Promotion (1965);
Third Division Champions (1968) | 504 | 43.25 | | Ron Saunders | March 1969 June 1969 | | 12 | 50.00 | | | Gerry Summers | July 1969 October 1975 | | 293 | 31.74 | | Mick Brown | October 1975 July 1979 | | 187 | 28.88 | | | Bill Asprey | July 1979 November 1980 | | 81 | 27.16 | | Ian Greaves | December 1980 January 1982 | | 50 | 44.44 | | | Roy Barry (caretaker) | February 1982 February 1982 | | 6 | 33.33 | | | March 1982 June 1985 | Third Division Champions (1984);
Second Division Champions (1985) | 167 | 53.30 | | | Maurice Evans | June 1985 March 1988 | League Cup Winners (1986) | 140 | 31.51 | | Mark Lawrenson | March 1988 October 1988 | | 23 | 17.39 | | | Brian Horton | October 1988 August 1993 | | 251 | 31.47 | | | August 1993 September 1993 | | 3 | 0.00 | | | September 1993 December 1997 | Second Division runners up (1996) | 248 | 40.08 | | Malcolm Crosby (caretaker) | December 1997 January 1998 | | 5 | 0.00 | | | Malcolm Shotton | January 1998 October 1999 | | 88 | 29.95 | | | October 1999 February 2000 | | 22 | 27.27 | | | February 2000 October 2000 | | 30 | 26.67 | | Mike Ford (caretaker) | October 2000 October 2000 | | 6 | 0.00 | | | David Kemp | October 2000 April 2001 | | 31 | 22.58 | | | May 2001 May 2001 | | 1 | 0.00 | | | May 2001 November 2001 | | 22 | 18.18 | | Ian Atkins | November 2001 March 2004 | | 122 | 38.52 | | | Graham Rix | March 2004 November 2004 | | 29 | 20.69 | | Darren Patterson (caretaker) | November 2004 December 2004 | | 3 | 33.33 | | | Ramon Diaz | December 2004 May 2005 | | 25 | 40.00 | | Brian Talbot | May 2005 March 2006 | | 44 | 22.73 | | | March 2006 March 2006 | | 3 | 33.33 | | | March 2006 November 2007 | | 82 | 41.46 | | | November 2007 - November 2008 | | 59 | 40.68 | | | December 2008 - December 2008 | | 4 | 50.00 | | | Chris Wilder | December 2008 - Present | | 10 | 70.00 | |
Honours
Records
The largest recorded home attendance at an Oxford United game was a match against Preston North End in the sixth round of the FA Cup at the Manor Ground on 29 February 1964. The attendance was 22,750, which exceeded the stadium's capacity, so scaffolding was needed to put up makeshift stands for the excess supporters. The largest attendance at the Kassam Stadium for a football match was 12,243 for the final match of the 2005–06 League Two season against Leyton Orient.
Oxford's largest-ever scoreline was a 9–1 win in the FA Cup first round versus Dorchester Town on 11 November 1995. In the league, their largest win was 7–0 versus Barrow in Division Four. Their largest defeat was 7–0 away to Sunderland in 1998. The largest league unbeaten run was 20 matches in 1984.
John Shuker holds the record for the most league appearances with 478 between 1962 and 1977. John Aldridge holds the record for most league goals scored in a season in the 1984-85 season, scoring 30. Graham Atkinson holds the record for the most league goals with 77.
The most capped player in international appearances is Jim Magilton with 18 caps for Northern Ireland. The largest amount of money Oxford has received by selling a player was £1,600,000 for Matt Elliott's transfer to Leicester City in January 1997. The largest transfer fee Oxford has paid was £475,000 for Dean Windass' transfer from Aberdeen in August 1998.
Further reading
External links
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