30/08/07 - Positivity Breeds Success

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official views of the trust.

It was recently suggested to me that I am far too negative in my views regarding the Yellows. Unfortunately the 80s mostly passed me by as we did not go to football then in my family so I was probably told to play outside or something. Although I do remember spending rainy Saturday afternoons watching the teletext pages flick past in an effort to keep up with the latest exploits. Anyway, the point is that all I have ever really known from being an Oxford fan is defeat, missed opportunities, and desperation. I have to admit that this has set me up quite well for life in that I always prepare for the worst but I am now feeling that a change is needed. No longer will I arrive at Grenoble Road filled with dread about how the likes of Stafford could embarrass us but I will now look to see the silver lining. However, before I start my new sunny disposition, I have one more gripe to aim at Setanta.

Sunday 30 September - York @ Home. I'm going to miss it. Many months ago I ordered tickets for the Kings/Ducks ice hockey at the O2 arena. There was a choice of games; Saturday or Sunday. Obviously Saturday was well out of the question as it is football day so I booked for the Sunday. How foolish I was! My main concern is that similar things could happen to all of us throughout the season. With Setanta stating that they will only give a month's notice of fixture changes (which obviously cause other fixture changes) then, unless you can live your life month by month, games could be missed and the financial incentive of a season ticket disappears. This is certainly something which needs to be addressed as the club relies heavily on season ticket sales and if fans become disillusioned with this system then a huge amount of pre-season revenue will be lost next season if we are still here.

Now that is out of the way, on with the positivity! We have an average of two points per game which is a good start and is not far off what we need in order to guarantee that crucial automatic promotion spot. Our defence seems to have that excellent combination of determination and luck which will hopefully see us have another miserly season. The only slight problem so far is scoring the goals but Twigg does look useful and if the others can start helping him out Trainer style then hopefully the opposition keepers will soon get bored of picking the ball out of their respective nets. Our midfield seems to be stronger than ever with seemingly endless ways to fill the three positions afforded to them. Of course, this embarrassment of riches does give Smith a selection headache but if he can rotate these players to best suit the opposition we are playing then it can only work in our favour.

It's Transfer Deadline day tomorrow and this could be one of our quietest but this is no bad thing. The general consensus seems to be that if no one leaves then no one will be coming in due to the wage budget constraints. As there is not really any deadwood amongst the permanent signings then letting anyone go could well weaken the squad and if some of our recent deadline day signings are anything to go by (Pitt, Sills, Gautelli) then someone new could well weaken the squad even further!! However, I shall still be checking the official site all day just in case (yes, I excite easily)……………………

There are two big home games this week and hopefully these will bring bigger crowds then the Stafford game. With the well publicised losses the club is making, attendances need to be as big as possible. Everyone needs to encourage as many people to come as possible. I did my part against Stafford having introduced two 'newbies' to Grenoble Road and they have pledged to come again which I guess might not have been the case if we had been stuffed but 25 yard finishes seem to excite people don't they?!

It was my birthday last week but don't worry about getting me a present; I'll just take the six points over the next seven days.

COME ON YOU YELLOWS!!