Liam Manning enjoys ‘terrific’ win as Oxford boost survival fight

Oxford boss Liam Manning described his team’s 4-0 win over Cheltenham as “a terrific evening”.

It was his first victory since taking charge at the Kassam Stadium and a first win in 18 games for the Us, who moved three points above the relegation zone.

Marcus Browne scored twice after Tyler Goodrham and Kyle Joseph had put Oxford in charge.

Manning said: “I am delighted for the players and staff because I’ve seen the work that’s gone in from everyone.

“It’s a terrific evening. From the start we found a good balance of controlled, not gung-ho, football. From the right structure we pressed well, looked good at the back, and I can’t remember (goalkeeper) Simon Eastwood having much to do, and we carried a constant threat going forward.

“We had conviction in our actions… there are a huge number of positives to take out of it, and I’ve said to the players, this is a benchmark. Now it’s all about reproducing that on a consistent basis.

“We all attacked and we all defended, it was a collective effort.

“Ultimately it was about finding a way to win tonight and we did that. People stepped up.

“I’ve known about Marcus Browne’s ability for a long time, from when he was at West Ham.

“I left Josh Murphy out against Portsmouth to get a reaction and he has produced that.

“And I have to say, the fans were great as well. The place was rocking tonight.”

Goodrham volleyed in Sam Long’s cross and Joseph converted Murphy’s pass before Browne scored twice in five minutes, heading in Joseph’s cross before rounding off the win with a brilliant individual effort.

Cheltenham manager Wade Elliott said: “I was just a bit frustrated because in the first half there wasn’t a lot in the game.

“My own opinion is that it’s a foul for the first goal. That’s pivotal in the game because the longer it stays 0-0 the more jittery they and the crowd become.

“We asked our players to go out and chase the game in the second half and ultimately we gave up cheap goals. We were probably chasing it a bit too much and we got picked off.

“I thought our performance in the first half was OK. But there was a 15-20 minute spell in the second half where it got away from us.

“We were architects of our own downfall. I have no problem with lads making mistakes. But we need to find a way of re-composing ourselves when that happens because we ended up getting really ragged.

“This might be a good lesson for us in the long term.”