Hoops dance their way to three points on the road.

Hebburn Town 0

Oxford City 3

Marsh 3'

Francillette 60'

Brown 65'

Oxford City picked up another big win on the road in Enterprise National League North with a convincing 3-0 victory on the road at Hebburn Town.

An early goal from Tyrone Marsh, followed by second-half goals from Ludwig Francillette and Ellis Brown secured the Hoops all three points, as Tyrae Njogu made his first league start, and Fernando Forestieri made his City debut from the bench. 

The win ends the home side's incredible run which saw them go unbeaten in the league at home for over a year.

A lightning start from the Hoops saw Marsh on the scoresheet within three minutes, after a dangerous ball across goal from Max Smith looked destined to settle in the far corner, but Marsh arrived to ensure it crossed the line, giving the Hoops the early advantage. 

For the remainder of the opening 20 minutes, little troubled either keeper. Jonny Maxted did have to be alert, coming out of his box to make an awkward clearance to deny the hosts a one-on-one effort, and both defences did well to cancel the other sides advances, but clear-cut efforts were slim. 

Much of the same theme continued, with the closest the hosts came to an equaliser in the first-half coming from a 36th-minute corner, with a first-time effort being touched over the bar. 

It was then Marsh who almost doubled the advantage just before half-time, after a lovely knock forward from Deago Nelson saw the forward through on goal, but the keeper beat him to the effort, which cemented a narrow one-goal advantage at the half. 

Half-time: Hebburn Town 0-1 Oxford City

A busy second half saw strong chances at both ends, with Maxted playing a crucial role in the City net in denying the hosts any chance of stealing something from the clash. 

That started early in the second half, with two saves in quick succession around the 50-minute mark seeing the keeper first deny from an awkward angle, then come off his line to block a one-on-one effort. 

Then, moments later, it was a lofty ball upfield from Maxted that saw Marsh chest over the line, but the ref had blown his whistle for something in the build-up, denying the Hoops their second. No bother, however, as City got their second (followed quickly by their third) shortly after. It was a 60th-minute corner, delivered by Scott Pollock, that was headed home by Francillette, a scenario which is becoming increasingly common for the defender.

It was Brown who got the Hoops’ third just four minutes later, as he drove forward, and passed through the legs of Dan Cameron in the Hornets’ net with 64 minutes on the clock. 

Both sides continued to search for the back of the net, with Hebburn desperate for, at the very least, a consolation goal, but City’s defensive unit dug deep to secure yet another clean sheet. 

Whilst Brown’s goal was the last of the scoring, it wasn’t the last of the action, and Forestieri joined in with that action on 81 minutes, making his first appearance in a City shirt, putting in the mileage as the game drew to a close. 

While another goal in the clash seemed certain, time ran out for either side to add to the scoreline. Ultimately, a job well done for the Hoops, as they extended their unbeaten run to five games on the bounce.

Three goals. Three points. Let’s keep it going next week!

City XI: Maxted, Humphries, Ashby ©, Francillette, Johnson, Pollock (Forestieri 81’), Marsh, Brown (McEachran 65’), Smith (Bateman 65’), Njogu (Potter 81’), Nelson. 

Subs Unused: Bloom, Carroll, Kauan