Oxford 'shoots of recovery' emerge in nick of time
· Yahoo Sports
A night to remember in Lancashire for Oxford. Spearheaded by Will Lankshear, Matt Bloomfield's side might just have unearthed some form in the nick of time.
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"We played with energy, freshness and enthusiasm," he beamed afterwards.
Oxford had risen to the challenge at Deepdale with a smart tactical approach clearly designed to unsettle a hopelessly out of form Preston team.
The U's struck early, but their fans may have feared the worst when Ciaron Brown headed over a simple chance to make it 2-0 and Preston promptly equalised.
But Oxford were to summon courage, spirit and some sprinkles of ruthlessness to engineer a win in the second half and change the complexion at the bottom of the Championship.
The addition of Jamie Donley in January looks shrewd - as does some added depth in reserve; Oxford's set-piece execution was also on the button on a poor Preston pitch.
These are shoots of recovery under Bloomfield as Oxford try to ensure themselves of a third successive season in the second tier.
"I believe we can do that. We'll be fighting," he said.
For the first time in nearly 14 months Oxford have back-to-back league wins and - crucially - some impetus to take into the final 10 games, starting against another team haunted by relegation, Blackburn Rovers, on Wednesday.