Making a Manager - The Story

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We signed five players in key positions we identified through our squad overview. We knew which positions required more depth and set out in to the pre-season with the objective of filling those positions.

With only one natural central defender at the club previously, Regan Upton was a vital signing for the club. He is a young central defender previously Burton Albion, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Tamworth. His only two senior appearances to date came for the latter last season. He's quite tall, fairly strong and has a lot of potential to become an EFL standard defender in the future.

We signed two young defensive midfielders in the form of Michael Freiter and Elliot Moss. The former was a Gillingham youth but played the vast majority of his senior games for Cray and East Thurrock United. He's a competent tackled who, unfortunately, has very low determination. However, beggars can't be choosy. Elliot Moss, on the other hand, is a very very very promising player. We become his first ever club and while he has some poor attributes for a midfielder, he is extremely determined.

Left back was not a priority position but Kris Owens comes in to give some much-needed competition. The former Liverpool youth is a very good signing for us. He has low determination and is on the short side but he has some pretty decent all-round skills which will be a great addition to our squad.

With only one natural winger in our squad, we needed additions. Nosa Iyamu is a fantastic one. The Nigerian-Englishman was a product of Birmingham City's lucrative academy and adds some much-needed pace to our side. He needs to improve physically but his chance creation ability will be a major asset to us.

Overall, our signings were pretty good. They were all very young, with many more years of improvement ahead of them. Iyamu and Moss, in particular, excite me and they will surely be important players for Oxford City in the future.

Yeah so.... we got spanked a few times. I set up the big games to gain some much-needed income for the club. We are struggling financially so we need every bit of income we can get.

In terms of our performance, I wasn't expecting much against the big teams. My players pleasantly surprised me in the final two fixtures, against Poole and Oxford City Nomads. They seemed to be in a free-scoring mood and I was optimistic that they'd carry it on into the new season.

So this is the opening set of fixtures for our season. My next update will be following October, and I will report on everything that happens in between now and then.

In terms of the fixtures we play, we have a decent start to the season. Torquay are the big team to play and we also have an FA Cup qualifier in September. Hopefully we do well.

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Discussion Five more players were signed to add some much-needed depth to key areas of the squad. Despite adding in the summer, we knew that more players were needed if we were to have a squad capable of lasting a whole season.

First in was former Chelsea youngster Adembambo Akinjogbin. The young English winger had pace to burn and a bit of a creative spark. Aside from his pace, his physical ability was non-existent, but he was young and I was confident he could become a very important player for us in the future.

A new backup goalkeeper in the form of Matt Funnell had arrived. Craig King had performed reasonably well in between the sticks but Funnell was a few years younger and could go on to become a decent EFL-standard goalkeeper in the future.

In Brad McGowan we had signed an improvement in central defence. The former Alfreton & Boston United defender was still very young but had ability to make him a force to be reckoned with in non-league football. He was also rather quick for a defender at this level, which was always a massive plus.

Former Manchester United and Liverpool youth Callum Nicholas joined to add competition to midfield. The creative Englishman had most recently played for FC United of Manchester and would give us more options to pick from.

Adrian Markus was signed to add depth to our strikeforce. The Romanian poacher had played for a number of non-league teams in the past and would provide competition to the attackers we already had at our disposal.

The season began with a comfortable win over Eastbourne to set the tone. We followed that up with good results against Gloucester, Woking, Torquay and St Albans before suffering our first defeat at the hands of Weston-super-Mare. We recovered to finish August with a strong win over Wealdstone.

September was a particularly impressive month as we scored four goals in three different games. Three wins and a draw in the league showed our strength, and we began our FA Cup campaign with a victory over Thatcham in the second qualifying round.

October was another busy month, with the FA Cup qualifiers taking most of our focus. Kabongo Tshimanga was the hero on both, scoring the only goal against Staines in the third round before scoring twice against Maidstone in the fourth round. Progression to the first round proper had been secured. We suffered defeat in the league in between the two qualifiers, but bounced back to win three on the trot to end the month on a high. One particular result included an absolute stunning 5-4 victory over Chelmsford.

The English striker has been in incredible form to start the season. Eighteen goals and three assists in just eighteen games has seen him become the side's talisman this season and I am confident he can kick on to score more than thirty goals this season.

Certainly better than we had expected! A record of 11-2-2 was enough to place us on top of the table for now but Torquay United, Billericay and Dulwich were right behind us. The priority for us was to avoid relegation but with a 23 point gap between us and the relegation zone, our eyes were on bigger prizes.

Our fixtures in the FA Cup may have just solved our financial issues. We are into the 1st Round now which will further increase our finances, win or lose, and we are in a very strong position now.

Games against Hampton & Richmond and East Thurrock will open the month of November for us before the big game. We will travel to EFL League One side Walsall to compete in the first round of the FA Cup and they are major favourites. Win, lose or draw I will be delighted with how my team performed in the competition to date. We achieved far more than we had expected so far and we can enjoy this game thoroughly.

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We made just one signing in November. Yiannis Constantinou joins as a bright prospect. The former West Ham youth was renowned as a pacey striker with incredible goal scoring skills. His understanding of the game wasn't that great but I was hoping that would improve with experience on and off the pitch.

Two comfortable wins in the league started off the month very nicely before our big trip to Walsall. We performed admirably to deserve an incredible draw, and earned a replay to be played back at our place. Walsall didn't know what hit them at our place as we pulled off an incredible extra time victory over a side three tiers above us.

Josh Ashby was named as our captain before the season and he put in a captain's performance throughout the month. He scored the memorable winning goal against Walsall in extra time to write his name in Oxford City's history books. What a man.

We extended our top of the table marginally with another month of football. Torquay United remain hot on our heels but the rest of the pack are beginning to fall away. We're making good ground in the league and we must keep this momentum going.

The games against Walsall landed us major money. First, the gate receipts proved to be a huge bonus and then the prize money for winning also boosted us an incredible amount. The second round will certainly boost us too.

Our reward for beating Walsall was a tie against Swindon Town. At home, we felt confident that we could provide another upset and we were certainly hoping to progress onto the third round of the cup.

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'The Cup of Dreams' is what the FA Cup is often called and for Oxford City that is exactly what it has been. The Oxfordshire club has defied expectations so far as they made their way into the second round of the competition. Victory over Walsall in an exciting FA Cup first round replay brought the eye of the media onto the club and a sense of optimism has begun to grow at Court Place Farm.

Victories over Thatcham, Staines and Maidstone in the qualifying rounds saw City reach the first round proper and they were rewarded with a trip to Walsall, a team three tiers above the National League South side. It was a challenge which Oxford City were not expected to overcome but they brought Walsall back for a replay at Court Place Farm and a frantic extra time period saw the hosts run out as surprise winners.

For Oxford City, a second round fixture at home against Swindon Town awaits. The Robins endured a disappointing campaign last time out, finishing 9th in EFL League Two. They had started the current campaign reasonably well and look set to compete for a play-off position.

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Oxford City will hope that they will have more luck at this stage of the competition than they did last season. City reached the second round last time out but suffered defeat at the hands of Nottingham County. In fact, not a single non-league team reached the third round of the FA Cup last term. Oxford City will be hoping for that record to not pass onto this season.

The manager behind Oxford City's incredible run to date, Ryan Ferguson, has heaped praise on his players for stepping up to the challenge and has complimented the club's fans for their support in the FA Cup games, particularly at Court Place Farm.

The former Liverpool youth coach has warned Swindon Town that his side will be more than prepared for their clash and that Court Place Farm is a difficult place for any travelling team to compete in.

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Ryan Ferguson:

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"(The players have been) brilliant. I don't think any spectator following our games can say a bad word about the commitment our lads have shown on the pitch or of their attitude off it. They've been thoroughly professional in every facet off their game.

We've a very young bunch of lads here. There's no player over the age of thirty here, which is actually quite surprising for a football club. That doesn't mean these players aren't experienced though. They've played in some very big games already this season and learned lessons that most players would require a few hundred games to learn. They've adapted to the new challenges very well.

We have a lot to thank our fans for. The atmosphere for the replay against Walsall was something else, it was incredible! They've shown us their loyalty over the years and their spirit has certainly made the club what it is. We're proud of our supporters and we want to give them back some memories to cherish.

Swindon Town won't know what will hit them when they arrive here. We took Walsall back here to Court Place Farm and rocked them, and we'll do the same to Swindon. They may want the win but we'll show that we want it more. The FA Cup means everything to us. We want to progress."

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Comment Section

Jim, thank you! It will be a hard month to follow up!
ScottT, yes the finances took a huge boost and should leave us all-but-secure for the time being.
mgriffin2012, home advantage will be a key factor, that's for sure!

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Previous Update: #7 - Season 2018-2019: November
Next Update: #9 - Swindon Stunned By Stellar Oxford City

National League South side Oxford City proved to be the surprise package in the FA Cup once more as they booked their place in the third round of the competition with a stunning 3-2 victory over EFL League Two side Swindon Town. City twice took the lead, with The Robbins bouncing back both times, before Nosa Iyamu scored the deciding goal early in the second half. Oxford City will be the only representative of the National League Regional divisions to compete in the third round this year, while Barnet and Wrexham of the National League Premier Division make up the rest of a trio of non-league teams to reach the third round.

It has been an incredible season to date for Oxford City, sitting atop of the National League South by a clear four point margin going into December. City recorded an incredible FA Cup qualifying run, including victory over a much-fancied Maidstone United. Qualification for the first round of the FA Cup rewarded Oxford City with an away tie against Walsall, but the non-league side brought their opposition back to Court Place Farm for a replay where they put them to the sword.

Reaching the second round seemed unlikely for Oxford City at the beginning of the season but the momentum which they had carried through in both league and cup fixtures had seen them drawn against Swindon Town in the second round. The Robbins were the favourites but pundits and media alike had not written off City, backing them at their home ground.

Ryan Ferguson became Oxford City's new manager in the summer and his tactical ideas had been implemented without too many hiccups in the process. It was an interesting game for the former Liverpool youth coach who was up against one of his former players in the form of Rhian Brewster, who had joined Swindon Town on loan from Liverpool for the season. The young striker had recovered well from torn ankle ligaments and had become a crucial part of Swindon Town's team.

It was also the beginning of a new era for Swindon Town with new manager Richard Shaw taking charge of his first game for the club. The former Crystal Palace reserves manager replaced Phil Brown at the club just days ago and this was a good opportunity for Richard Shaw to show his stock as a manager.

Ryan Ferguson's high-pressure style of football was evident in the opening stages of this fixture as City were quick to close down Swindon's players, not giving them an inch of space. They were first to every loose ball and looked to hit Swindon on the counter at every opportunity.

Kabongo Tshimanga had been in relentless form for City before this fixture, scoring eighteen times before this fixture, and he netted his nineteenth goal of the season in as early as the twelfth minute of the game. Zac McEachran had moved into space on the left before whipping in a low cross to the Englishman who saw his first effort parried into the ground by Swindon 'keeper Luke McCormick, but was quick to sweep the rebound into the back of the net. Advantage City.

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Swindon Town were certainly taken aback by Oxford City's frantic start to the game but quickly found calmness in their play. They threatened from a number of set-pieces before Nick Arnold clattered the Oxford City crossbar with a powerful long range free-kick.

It was a sign of things to come and City certainly didn't heed the warning as Swindon Town equalised late in the second half. It was from another free-kick as Nick Arnold picked out the top corner of the goal with a curled effort, leaving Craig King rooted to the spot in the Oxford goal. Game on.

Oxford City ended the first half in similar fashion to how they started it. From a free-kick out wide, Josh Ashby curled the ball right in front of Luke McCormick in the Swindon goal, who was helpless as an unmarked Regan Upton smashed a header past him to restore Oxford's lead going into the break.

Set-pieces were always going to be Swindon Town's strong point and they leveled the game, once more, from a corner five minutes into the second half. It was a brilliant out-swinging corner from Nick Arnold which created the opportunity for Sid Nelson to score and the centre-half obliged with aplomb.

It was somewhat of a ding-dong battle in the early stages of the second half and Oxford City found themselves in the lead once more. A quick counter-attack started by Nosa Iyamu culminated with the winger ending it as he turned home Kabongo Tshimanga's low cross with an acrobatic finish.

Iyamu's goal proved to be the decisive moment in the game as the home side held out for a memorable win, booking their place in the third round of the FA Cup for the second season in a row. It was just-rewards for Ryan Ferguson and his hard-working team who had overcome the odds once more.

For Oxford City, they have a very busy schedule ahead of them this month. City will host Nuneaton in the third qualifying round of the FA Trophy before competing against Truro City in the league. With a big clash against Billericay Town on the horizon, Oxford City will look to turn their focus back to league play as soon as possible.

For Swindon Town, Richard Shaw will take charge of his first ever senior league fixture when The Robbins host Newport County next Saturday. It won't be too long before they play similar opposition again as an EFL Trophy fixture against Newport County will be played the following Wednesday. Richard Shaw will be hoping to pick up his first victory as a senior manager against The Exiles.

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