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Southend started the brighter of the two teams, Mark Rawle stabbing a Graeme Jones flick just wide in the second minute, but ten minutes later Oxford were frustrated as they came within a whisker of taking the lead, veteren striker David Oldfield beating Darryl Flahavan with a long range thunderbolt that crashed back off the crossbar, but as the ball dropped Andy Scott somehow nodded the ball wide of an empty net.
Jones shot straight at former Southend goalkeeper Andy Woodman from 25 yards before the winner arrived on 20 minutes, a fine move culminating in Mark Beard's oprecise ball into the six yard box where the diving Rawle was on hand to head the winner past the desparing Woodman from close range.
Kevin Maher shot wayward on the half hour mark, before what was now an uneventful first half drew to a close shortly after Scott rolled a weak effort straight into the hands of Flahavan.
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As the supporters from Essex nervously awaited the final whistle throughout the second half, Oxford supporters were getting increasingly frustrated at what they saw as persistant time-wasting, to be honest it was a brutal over exaggeration from the home fans.
Flahavan did well to hold James Hunt's free kick two minutes after the break before good Southend pressure ended with Beard testing Woodman with a fierce shot. A great run by Maher, turning his marker before shooting inches wide could have resulted in a second Southend goal, but on 69 minutes it was thanks to Flahavanb that the Shrimpers were still ahead, brilliantly pushing away Scott flying volley. Substitute Manny Omoyinmi then warmed the hands of the Shrimpers custodian from 25 yards.
With 15 minutes remaining Tes Bramble's right wing cross was headed over the crossbat by Rawle before the last real action of the match, amazingly ten minutes from time, saw Flahavan produce a truly phoenomenal stop, blocking Omoyinmi's shot with his feet from literally point blank range.
Mark Wallis
www.thelittlegazette.com