FA Cup Preview | Westbury United v Oxford City
Hoops kick off FA Cup journey with away trip
Oxford City begin the eagerly anticipated FA Cup run with an away trip to Westbury United for the 2nd Round Qualifying on the weekend.
Could this be the year? There are few things in life better than a cup run and to do it in the FA Cup, the world's oldest knockout competition would special.
Last year, The Hoops made it to the 3rd round qualifying before being dumped out of the competition to Gosport Borough, a lower division side.
This year, we kick off our competition with a game away to Westbury United in Wiltshire. They are nicknamed "The White Horse Men" due to the chalk hill figure which over looks the town. If you haven't seen it, google it, because it's pretty cool.
Our hosts for the weekend play their league football in the Southern League Division One South, the same league as Didcot Town for reference, and currently sit in 10th place with an impressive record of 2 wins and a loss. They have a couple of games in hand due to the first round replay they had against Yate Town after the first was a 2-2 stalemate.
City travelled to Buxton a week ago and were undeserved losers as Buxton won 2-1. An early refereeing decision would ultimately go on to cost The Hoops at least a point.
Oxford City need three wins to progress to the first round proper, a feat not achieved by the club since 2022, where they faced Fleetwood Town. City came agonisingly close the following year to repeating the achievement but a final round replay defeat to Scarborough would put an end to another cup run.
Following the Buxton game on the weekend, Oxford City Manager Ross Jenkins said: "The boys have to go again. They have to show maturity and shake it off.
"They will be up for the battle and at home they will really hungry for a win. It's a big competition and we have to do well in it and hopefully we can do that and start the campaign well."
FIXTURE DETAILS
Westbury United v Oxford City
Meadow Lane – Saturday 13th September – 3:00pm
FA Cup 2nd Round Qualifying
Referee: Neil Pratt Assistant Referees: Martin Bloor & Luke Hinchcliffe Fourth Official: Paul Barber
FACT FILE
#1
1937/38 is the landmark year for Westbury United in the FA Cup. It is the only time on record that they reached the first round proper after beating Welsh side Llanelly 3-2 in the fourth qualifying round. They hosted London's Walthamstow Avenue but lost 3-1. Their best result since then was the 3-1 victory over AFC Totton in 2024 which saw them progress to 2nd Round Qualifying.
#2
In 2025, Westbury United faced a ground-grading issue, due to the dimensions of the changing rooms, that temporarily affected their ability to host fixtures; the situation prompted local support, temporary ground-share arrangements and a visible community effort to keep the club competitive at step-4 level.
#3
This will be the first meeting between Oxford City and Westbury in history.
#4
The White Horse which overlooks the town is one of the oldest and largest chalk figures in Wiltshire. It was reshaped in 1873 and possibly dated back to King Alfred's era as a commemoration to his victory over the Vikings. The Horse was camouflaged during the Second World War to prevent it being used as a navigation landmark by the enemy.
#5
In 2021/22 Westbury United were runners-up in the Hellenic League Premier Division, which earned them promotion to the Southern League for the first time in the club's history. Since then they have finished 10th, 17th and 13th.
