The first thing I would say about Dagenham is that it is deceptively far away. The Dagenham East tube stop lies almost at the very end of the District Line. As a result of this, a large number of Oxford United supporters arrived at the run-down, yet charismatic, Victoria Road bang on quarter to eight. Given the nature of their stadium and the fact that they are located less than five minutes away from one of England's most famous football clubs in West Ham, Dagenham's promotion to League One two years ago was a highly improbable, yet quite remarkable achievement. Let us hope that Oxford can replicate their success this season.
After this performance, the signs are encouraging. United were the superior side for almost the entirety of this encounter, running out worthy winners by a single goal. The result saw Oxford rise to 11th in the league, level on points with bitter rivals Swindon Town and the bookies' favourite for promotion Bristol Rovers. A meagre two points seperates Oxford and third place Port Vale.
Still, it took a while for the game to come to life. The opening fifteen minutes involved players from either side carelessly lumping the ball high into the air - the hoof-ball was not easy on the eye. Peter Leven tried to liven proceedings up by attempting a daring 40-yard strike, but it fell harmlessly into the arms of Dagenham goalkeeper Chris Lewington. Five minutes later the Daggers had their first real opening, as Barbadian Jon Nurse nipped in front of Michael Duberry, only for his header to flash past the post. With thirty-five minutes on the clock, United finally created a meaningful opportunity to break the deadlock. Once again Leven was at the heart of the move, sliding in a perfectly weighted ball for 17-year-old Ryan Hall, making his debut on loan from West Ham, who fizzed a threatening ball across the Dagenham box into the path of the onrushing James Constable, only for United's top scorer to hook the ball over. Hall was very encouraging on his debut - he has electric pace and an assured first touch. He is certainly a step up from the hugely disappointing Lewis Guy. Wilder had also finally elected to start Damien Batt in place of the hapless Andrew Whing, which offered United another attacking outlet down the right flank. Aside from this, Oxford were unchanged from the Burton game. It was a strong team and one that Wilder should stick to.
With five minutes until to break, Hall (Ryan, not Asa) put United in front. A pre-rehearsed free kick saw Paul MacLaren (who was superb) slide the ball across the box for Hall to nip in front of his man and hammer the ball home. A well-taken goal - the sort of calm finish that Oxford have been craving in previous weeks.
The second half saw the Oxford faithful come to life, belting out the Sloop John B tune and putting real emphasis on the "Dagenham's a shithole...I wanna go home" part of the song. It is true, I would not choose to live in Dagenham. The roar of the 420 Oxford fans behind the goal (making up a sizeable number of the 1920 attendance) seemed to spur United on. McLaren won the ball on the edge of the Dagenham box and fed a delicate path into the path of substitute Josh Payne, who appeared intent on forcing his way into the starting line-up with a fantastic performance - hurtling into tackles while also providing flair and panache. Payne then played Alfie Potter through on goal, who twisted and turned in the box, alluding Lewington before somehow spooning his shot onto the bar and over. Two minutes later the mercurial Potter was through again, but this time Lewington pulled off a brilliant save to deny the wing wizard.
The Oxford faithful feared a repeat of Bradford, Aldershot and Burton, namely an inability to see the game out. This was especially the case after the ineffectual Deane Smalley was brought on in place of Constable, thus leaving the Yellows with little attacking threat. The Daggers offered very little, but Ryan Clarke was still required to pull off an impressive late save to ensure that Oxford went home with all three points. On this showing, Dagenham could be in for a long and difficult season on their return to League Two, but keep an eye out for that trio of Swindon, Oxford and Rovers.
Man of the Match: Ryan Hall
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