More minutes banked in pre-season.

Oxford City 0

Sutton United 3

Odelusi 4'

Davies 52'

Vaz 65'

Oxford City stepped up their pre-season preparations with another testing workout against a strong Sutton United side.

The Hoops ended up on the wrong end of a 3-0 score line, but most importantly, the squad banked more important minutes in the legs.

The 154 fans inside Court Place Farm were treated to a lively first ten minutes, but it was the visitors who started the brighter of the two teams.

The first scare came within three minutes when Dillon De Silva’s shot flashed just wide of goal. Nevertheless, Sutton didn’t have to wait long for a goal.

Just one minute later, Steve Morrison’s side took the lead. The lively Siju Odelusi managed to poke the ball across the line in a crowded six-yard box after a goalmouth scramble. A scrappy goal, but a goal nonetheless.

Straight from the re-start, City looked for an instant response. Lewis Coyle’s volley from twenty-yards looked speculative at first, but it almost caught Sutton ‘keeper Matt Kerbey off guard and he had to parry the shot wide of the post.

Sutton perhaps could’ve felt hard done by not to be two-goals up inside a frantic seven minutes. However, their trialist midfielder flicked his header narrowly wide from close-range.

From there on, the game started to settle, and we saw the principles of Sam Cox’s methodology start to appear. At times, City’s football was a joy to watch.

Playing the ball from the back, the Hoops cut-through Sutton’s midfield, but in the final third they couldn’t find the final pass or finishing touch to end the positive playing patterns they’d started.  

At the back, though, Sutton continued to threaten.

The lively De Silva and Odelusi were at the heart of their attacks on the left-hand side, but City’s defence managed to keep the ball out of harms way.

Brad Stretton’s free-kick was the closest City came to scoring in the first-half, but his effort from just outside the penalty area drifted just inches over the crossbar.

Half-Time: Oxford City 0-1 Sutton United

Seven minutes after the re-start Sutton had their second goal of the game.

Will Davies was on hand to shrug off his marker and stab the ball into the roof of the net. 

It was Eduino Vaz who scored the goal of the game. In the 65^th minute his bombing run from left-back opened up the space for a cross.

Unfortunately for City, the resulting cross caught McKenzie-Lyle off guard, and the looped effort dropped into the far corner of the net.

With fifteen minutes to go, Sutton decided to sub their entire team off the pitch for a new eleven.

Meanwhile, a youthful City team were eased into the action with the likes of Brayden Daniel, Josh McConnell and Patrick Osborne introduced into the action.

However, City couldn’t find their way past a Sutton team that look like they could challenge for an instant return to the EFL this season.

It was another friendly where the squad were all handed important minutes as we gear towards the season curtain-raiser.

Thank you to our friends from Sutton United, we wish you the best of luck ahead of the new season.

Attendance: 154

Oxford City Starting XI: McKenzie-Lyle, Ezennolim (Burley 46’), Jones, Kpekawa (Trialist 73’), Coyle (Osborne 77’), Andrews, McEachran (Ashby 46’), Stretton (McConnell 77’), Potter (Daniel 68’), Croker (Trialist 68’), Carbon.

Subs not used: Russell, Trialist

Sutton United Starting XI: Kerbey, Williams, Taylor, Muller, Vaz, Wadham, Odelysi, Trialist, Sivi, Davies, De Silva

Subs: Roberts, Eccleston, French, Ransom, Simper, Harris, Trickett, Coley, Boateng, Rush.