Oxford make 'statement' to Portsmouth and League One rivals in win over Doncaster

Oxford boss Karl Robinson felt his side made a ‘big statement’ to Pompey and the rest of League One in their win over Doncaster.
Karl RobinsonKarl Robinson
Karl Robinson

James Henry struck twice while former Liverpool man Cameron Brannagan also netted as the U’s ran out 3-0 victors against Darren Moore’s Donny at the Kassam Stadium.

It was a fifth victory in 13 league matches for Oxford which leaves them just a point off the play-off places as they sit eighth in the table.

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The U’s have beaten promotion hopefuls Peterborough in the league and Carabao Cup already this season.

They also secured a draw at Sunderland and beat Premier League West Ham at the Kassam Stadium in the EFL Cup.

And Robinson reckons Oxford made another ‘statement’ as they defeated Doncaster.

Although the U’s boss was less than impressed by his side’s efforts in the second half in the victory over Moore’s men.

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Robinson told the Oxford Mail: ‘One hundred per cent, because I see Doncaster as one of the best teams in the league.

‘I watched them play Portsmouth (last week) and they were outstanding.

‘The result was emphatic when you look at the quality of the opposition.

‘We’ve had some great results, but against a team like that it was a really big statement.

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‘But I still thought we were poor in the second half. I thought we were off it.

‘It’s not so much the goals we could have scored, it’s more the opportunities we gave to the opposition through our own stupidity.

‘Maybe I’m being harsh, but we lost our shape a bit and they found gaps.

‘But what an unbelievable victory and there’s a lot more to come.’

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Paul Tisdale is confident MK Dons can turn their fortunes around after suffering a fifth successive League One defeat as they were beaten at Bristol Rovers.

Former Pompey defender Tom Davies’ first goal since arriving at the club in the summer ensured the Gas ran out 1-0 victors.

It consigned MK Dons to an eighth loss in 12 league matches and leaves them 18th in the table – just three points above the relegation zone.

But boss Tisdale is remaining positive and insists he is still seeing positive signs from his side.

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Yet the MK Dons manager admitted they must ‘find a way’ as they look to turn around a run of five straight league defeats.

Tisdale told the Milton Keynes Citizen: ‘The commitment and work rate are always a prerequisite but there would be teams in this situation who would start to wane and ours is not.

‘We need to make it go our way and find a way. We would have wanted a clean sheet today, they scored from a set-piece which will always demand questions going into work on Monday but we know exactly where we are with it.

‘It's a plus when you've just lost five games on the bounce that the players still had that drive, energy and work rate, but we all know we need something to go our way.

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‘The players still played some good football, they still tried to play our way, but there's no hiding the fact we're lacking attacking options and the moment and we've got to find a way to do it.’

Other results: Blackpool 1-2 Rotherham, Peterborough 2-0 Lincoln, Rochdale 2-1 Accrington, Southend 1-4 AFC Wimbledon