3rd round day arrived with a peculiar feeling, see this would be the first game we had been too which you could describe as local since the opening round the first time we did this. That meant a much more normal Saturday. In the morning I took JJ’s brother to the supermarket. Then JJ and I had lunch together in our own dining room. I still had time to pack up our bag (and a lot of warm clothes) before it was time to drive the 25 mins or so to the home of Oxford United.
Now 3rd round day for me was always when the competition really started. The cup upsets felt bigger the stories would consume the papers. In this very round back in the 80’s it was rumoured Sir Alex Ferguson (back when he was just Alex) would of lost his job had Man United be knocked out by my beloved Forest. I remember watching the game and being so disappointed at the Mark Robins goal. Ok, ok I’ll stop reminiscing my point being this was always the start when I was young I never really understood the significance or the struggles so many clubs had endured just to get here. It seemed fitting to be going local to see our local team look to take the next step.
We arrived at the ground an hour or so before kick off, for those not familiar with Oxford the ground is an unusual experience, it’s next to a small leisure complex (cinema, restaurants) and whilst there is an enormous amount of parking it’s something of a procession into the car park. An hour before kick off and there were no disabled spaces available. We ended up parked about 15 mins walk back to the stadium. Fine for JJ and I but not so good for many with disabilities.
Another peculiar sight as you approach, I mean for a league ground anyway is it only has 3 stands. Behind one of the goals is the beginning of all the parking. It can make for a strange atmosphere and a colder match day experience. The other oddity is they don’t have specific disabled seating (we came once before for a league game and had a similar experience) so you get allocated a seat for the wheelchair and have to position it in front of the seat. It was pretty busy so I felt a little sorry for the guy sat the other side of JJ as their seating was subsequently restricted.
The game was brilliant. Oxford excelled from the start confident on the ball and looked every part a team 2 divisions above there opponents. Then early in the first half I turned to JJ who was trying to hold hands with his new friend sat next to him when an almighty cheer went up from the away fans. Hartlepool were in front from a defensive lapse a poor back pass letting them in.
I’d missed the whole Karl Robinson revolution at Oxford but boy did they play some lovely football. Amazingly at half time Hartlepool still led I’m still not sure how. The second half bought more of the same but eventually the Oxford pressure and quality told and they ran away with it in the second half eventually running out 4-1 winners.
We were treated to an exceptional goal that should of been goal of the round when Oxford’s Baptiste danced around several players throwing out some lovely tricks before calmly slotting into the bottom corner. Those kinds of goals just bring so much joy to a ground and JJ and I revelled in the noise that goal in particular bought.
So a cracking game all in all. As is the norm we waited for the masses to empty before departing then headed back to the car where I could give JJ some dinner. This actually helped as the procession in leads to a long wait out. Those of at the back of the overflow can wait 45 mins or so to actually escape the car park. So that’s always worth factoring in for any trip to Oxford. Though I will say it’s a lovely place to visit and very family orientated.
So we sit back and wait for the 4th round draw and hope the adventure continues.
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