The Council meeting went very well yesterday judging by reports. The Oxford City Council Strategy & Resources Committee agreed to the deal with Kassam, and accepted all of his terms. This decision still needs to be endorsed by the Council itself (on 19 April at 4pm), but this should be a rubber-stamping exercise. The council also plan a public consultation, including public meetings in Littlemore and Blackbird Leys, and also a city-wide opinion poll. Here is the text of FOUL's address to the meeting.

Council Leader John Tanner said, "I am delighted that we have been able to strike a deal with Mr Kassam, but nothing is signed yet. We want to consult the public at two meetings in Blackbird Leys and Littlemore to see if people want a leisure development of this type. We will seek wider public opinion throughout the city through a scientific opinion poll to see if others think this is as good a deal as we do."

The deal involves Kassam completing the stadium by January 1 2000 (no jokes about the millennium dome please). He would not be able to develop any adjacent land until the stadium is completed.  He would also pay £1 million to the council to cover the money which the club owes on the original stadium deal (£900,000 plus interest).

Firoz Kassam decides today whether (a) to sign a deal with Robin Herd to buy the club, or (b) to extend his option to buy the club for a further time period, or (c) to walk away from the deal. Hopefully the final possibility is unlikely. Yesterday's council committee decision won't harm the chances of Kassam choosing (a) or, more likely, (b).

Crewe lost 3-0 to Wolves last night, meaning that they are now five points behind us with just one game in hand. The relevant end of the division one table now looks as follows :
 

Today is the first of two important days for Oxford United. At 9.30 this morning, there is a meeting of the  City Council's Strategy & Resources Committee. On their agenda is to discuss and possibly decide on Firoz Kassam's proposal for the land deals and hotel and leisure developments around the Minchery Farm site, and also on the Council's own involvement in the stadium company. FOUL has applied to address the meeting before they discuss Oxford.

Tomorrow is the day on which Firoz Kassam's option to buy Oxford runs out. The likely scenario is that he extends his option until he discovers whether he can get planning permission for the mulitplex cinema. Obviously today's Council meeting could also have a major bearing on his decision.

Crewe use up one of their games in hand on Oxford tonight as they visit playoff-chasing Wolves.

The incredible happened on Friday as Oxford won for the first time in eight matches, and in an away game! Even more incredible, Nicky Banger produced a good cross for the first goal, a stunning free kick for the second, and apparently played well throughout the match. Proof that miracles do happen. Paul Gerrard produced a string of excellent saves in the last game of his loan spell. Oxford are now out of the relegation zone once more, but much will depend on the games that other teams have in hand. Still, roll on Bolton...

I liked the quote from Robbo in the Oxford Mail  :"Paul Gerrard made half-a-dozen very good saves and a couple were point blank. That's quality for you. Unfortunately we can't afford quality and we're sorry to see him go." We can't afford quality - I wonder what Mike Williams feels about that statement!

Sheffield United fans protested against their board's policy of selling players before and after the match with Oxford. They're certainly in financial trouble (£6 million in debt before the sales), but one can't help feeling that compared to the fix Oxford are in, Sheffield United are doing ok. Even so the image of chairman Kevin McCabe explaining the club's transfer policy (i.e. selling all the good players), whilst being both "jostled" and "verbally abused" by the fans (according to the Yorkshire Post) is a not entirely unpleasant one.

Thanks go to the Daily Mail for getting their facts right as usual. In a report on Chester City they state that Chester are one of several clubs being run by administrators, including "Portsmouth, Luton and Oxford" (my italics). Firoz Kassam's option on buying the club expires on Wednesday. Maybe the Mail uses a crystal ball for its reports.

Oxford's financial problems were drawn into sharp contrast with some of their relegation rivals yesterday. Whilst Oxford could not afford even the estimated £30,000 that two players from Atherstone United would have cost, Port Vale spent £640,000 on bringing five new faces in for the rest of the season. Bury didn't buy any players, but they managed to afford to bring two Premiership players to Gigg Lane on loan. Some reports state that Crewe beat the deadline to bring in Mike Newell, but this is not confirmed. Details of the deadline day activities of the bottom five clubs are as follows :
 

TEAM	PLAYERS IN	PLAYERS OUT
Bury	Derek Lilley (Leeds United, loan) Anthony Ormerod (Middlesbrough, loan) Carl Serrant (Newcastle, loan extension)	None
Port Vale	Dave Brammer (Wrexham, £350,000) Tony Butler (Blackpool, £115,000) Carl Griffiths (Leyton Orient, £100,000) Alex Smith (Chester City, £75,000) Tommy Widdrington (Grimsby, loan)	None
Oxford United	Michael Williams (Burnley, free)	None
Crewe Alexandra	Mike Newell (Aberdeen, free) ???	None
Bristol City	David Howells (Southampton, loan)	Sean Dyche (Luton, loan) Lorenzo Pinamonte (Carlisle, loan) Tony Thorpe (Luton, loan)

Oxford play at Sheffield United tonight in a fixture rearranged from tomorrow in order not to clash with the England match. Why the FA are allowed actively to hinder Football League clubs by holding internationals at 3pm on a Saturday is beyond me. Anyway, Oxford desperately need to pick up at least a point at Bramall Lane, where the home side is also in financial trouble. This forced the pre-deadline sale of both David Holdsworth and Graham Stuart. Apparently BIFA (the Blades Independent Fans Assoc.) is planning to hold a rally before tonight's game in protest at the sales.

Also tonight - Crewe visit Tranmere. C'mon Aldo, do us all a favour...

Don't forget Fans United 4 in Portsmouth on Sunday!

TRANSFER DEADLINE PASSED

Well, the deadline has passed, and it seems we have only signed Michael Williams, on a free from Burnley. Apparently the Atherstone United defenders have slipped through the net. Rumours that we were to sign Rob Steiner and/or Rory Allen on loan seem to have been unfounded. Steiner has been loaned to Walsall (from Bradford). All this, of course, is based on the list of transfers published on the Web so far. Perhaps I am speaking too soon...

EARLIER NEWS

It's Transfer Deadline Day today, with Shotton aiming to bring any of three players to the Manor to strengthen Oxford's transfer-ravaged squad. The players are :

Richard Barratt (Atherstone United) - a promising 21 year old right wing-back (who has also played on the left for the Warwickshire club). Barratt is reportedly a superb crosser of the ball. His agent recently scuppered a proposed £15,000 move to Sheffield United, and a move to Cambridge United fell through for similar reasons. Given Oxford's record with players' agents in recent seasons, we should be thankful that Barratt and his agent have now parted company. Barratt has played for the Doc Martens League representative XI this season. He also had a trial at Bolton Wanderers.

Mark Albrighton (Atherstone United) - a 24 year old centre back and captain of Atherstone. He is rated as one of the best defenders in non-league football, strong both in the air and on the ground. Like Barratt, he played for a Doc Martens League representative XI in December.

Michael Williams (Burnley) - a 29 year old former Sheffield Wednesday midfielder, who has fallen out with manager Stan Ternent at Burnley, and has not appeared for the side since August. He is available on a free transfer. He was on trial at Oxford earlier in the season.
 
 

Results went Oxford's way last night with both Port Vale and Bristol City losing, without either scoring. This leaves Bristol City six points behind us, and Port Vale just above us thanks to having scored one more goal than us. Both sides still have a game in hand on us. Oxford reserves kept up yesterday's positive theme, winning 3-0 at QPR. Both Atherstone United trialists played, with Richard Barratt scoring one of the goals. Shotton is apparently also looking into taking Michael Williams on a free from Burnley until the end of the season.

Luton Town went into receivership yesterday afternoon, after chairman David Kohler failed to find a buyer for his shares. Kohler is well-known for his proposed "KohlerDome" project, a superstadium to be built in his honour, complete with removable pitch. Luton fans had recently felt he was keener on his pet stadium than on the team. Things came to a head recently when the Kohlerdome was refused planning permission, and also an unlighted petrol bomb was placed in Kohler's letter box. Read more at this Hatters unofficial site.

A slooow news day as far as Oxford are concerned. It is worth reminding people that Fans United 4 takes place on Sunday, at Portsmouth's home match against Barnsley.

It seems that Malcolm is still hopeful of finding the money to sign the trialists from Atherstone United before the transfer deadline on Thursday. Why else would they be playing in the reserve match at QPR this afternoon?

Oxford finally slipped into the relegation zone over the weekend, and with games at playoff-chasing Sheffield United and home to promotion contenders Bolton to come, it seems likely the bottom three will become a long-term home. Once again a bad decision cost us dearly in an away match, with a blatantly offside goal (in the 85th bloody minute) by Crewe's Colin Little being allowed to stand by the officials. Opinion is divided on the penalty - personally I thought it was an obvious penalty, but when even Crewe's Dario Gradi disagrees, perhaps I ought to view it again on Nationwide League Extra. What I do know is that the penalty incident wouldn't have taken place at all if that second Crewe goal had been disallowed. Oh well...

Anybody remember a series called Cox's Promises? Well Cox himself is long gone (shortly after I included his first and only "promise"), but those with long memories will remember that he stated that financially we did not need to sell any more players this season. That myth was well and truly busted when it emerged that we can't even afford to sign two non-league players from Atherstone (Richard Barrett and Mark Albrighton). This after making around £450,000 from the sale of Dean Windass. If I were Shotts, I'd resign. (I guess Oxford are lucky that I'm not.)

Saturday's Independent magazine section contained a guest column by Firoz Kassam in which he defended "presenteeism" and the work ethic. He sounded like a fairly driven person. He did mention that he is "in the process of buying" Oxford United, and that his ambition is to own a football club.

Oxford have something of a selection problem for tomorrow's game at Crewe, with Martin Gray and Joey Beauchamp suspended, and Chris Remy and Brian Wilsterman injured. This leaves Oxford with 14 fit outfield players, including Tony Wright who has been hastily recalled from Swansea. Paul Gerrard (thigh), Paul Tait (hamstring) and Paul Powell (ankle) are all also carrying injuries. (Is there a jinx on the name "Paul"?) Crewe boss, Dario Gradi, evidently thinks Oxford are a good team with his comment, "If Oxford are better than us on Saturday then maybe we'll have to accept we are a relegation team."

FOUL have issued the following media release :

Press Release 18/3/99 - Oxford
NO EMBARGO

The events of the past week have clearly demonstrated the dangers of disharmony within the Town Hall, and the damage that disunity can do. Fortunately, the near death of Oxford United was avoided by a refreshing display of political honesty. FOUL wishes to congratulate the Green Party for its courage in admitting to a mistake, and doing so quickly enough to avoid a potential disaster. We view this as a brave and honest stance by any political party, and a signal that it is the will of this City that Oxford United survives.

FOUL has always stated that it will not rake over the past. We have always felt that recriminations are unconstructive and unhelpful, and that it is better to deal with the present, and to plan for the future.

At our first meeting at Oxford Town Hall in November we asked the supporters of Oxford United for their unity, and they responded in great numbers. At the second meeting in February we asked the ruling Labour party to grasp the opportunity that Kassam offered, and they and their officers responded with great commitment.  Now we ask for all sides of the Council Chamber to come together to consolidate the enormous strides that have been made in recent weeks. In achieving this we believe they can deliver to this city a football club and leisure site people can  be proud of.

FOUL would like to thank the dozens of people who came forward as potential candidates to the elections in May but wishes to announce that they are no longer required. In the constructive climate that now exists we feel it unnecessary to enter into a political contest against parties who now share our common goal. We ask all factions of the City Council to take our lead, to put away their differences, and to share information and resources. If this can be achieved we have confidence that the survival of Oxford United can be attained.

Our slogan throughout this campaign has been ‘United, we will never be defeated’. Now we ask that this philosophy is extended to the Town Hall.

The period of disunity is over -  now it’s time for us all to work together.

FOUL
c/o Whittle Road
Thame

According to reports, the holding order on the planning application has been withdrawn. This means that the planning permission for a commercial development (specifically excluding a multiplex cinema) on the land next to Minchery Farm has been granted. The club still, however, does not actually own the land, so in fact any buyer could take advantage of the planning permission. The council will decide on the sale of the land at its Strategy and Resources Committee meeting on 30 March.

The decision to withdraw the holding order is believed to have been "unprecedented", and most people involved were amazed that the Government Office of the South East (GOSE) agreed to lift the order. The GOSE released the following statement : "Following petition from Oxford City Council and realising that there was no multiplex in the plans, the Secretary of State has decided he should not intervene. This direction has now been cancelled".

Three non-league trialists played in last night's 2-0 reserve victory over Barnet. Blyth Spartans striker, Wayne Edgcumbe, scored one of the goals. The other two trialists, Mark Albrighton and Richard Barratt, are both from Atherstone Town.

Portsmouth have confirmed that they plan to hold a rally before their match at home to Barnsley on Sunday March 28. Fans from all other clubs, especially those in financial trouble, are being asked to join the rally, which starts at 12 noon at Guildhall Square in Portsmouth. PFSC federation officer Angela Cox commented, "Many clubs are currently in a similar position or likely to be some time in the not too distant future. With this in mind, we are asking for football fans around the country to unite as they did so successfully at Brighton in the past, the idea being to show support not just for Portsmouth but for all football clubs who are experiencing difficulties."

COUNCIL MEETING NEWS

Issues were further clouded at the Council meeting today, as it appears that Mike Woodin, the Green Party councillor who placed a holding order on the planning application, has admitted that he should have talked to FOUL first, and allegedly admitted his own incompetence. Steve Hanks, FOUL chairperson, called upon Woodin to resign. Despite all this, the holding order on the application remains. Curiouser and curiouser...

Apparently the planning permission applied for is NOT for a multiplex cinema, but in fact for an unspecified commercial leisure development. Application to remove a clause disallowing a multiplex cinema is sought, which is what led to all these rumours about the multiplex. This would allow Kassam to apply for planning permission for the multiplex itself at a later date. Despite Clr Woodin's retraction of his objections, the holding order on the application still stands.

The Planning Committee voted 9-0 in favour of the application sans  Multiplex, with 2 abstentions (including Woodin). The application is now to be considered by the Government Office of the South East (GOSE), a process which could take at least a few weeks. The GOSE still has the power to cancel the holding order and prevent the planning application being "called in". (If it were "called in" it would mean that John Prescott would need to personally approve the application.) The club's best hope is that the holding order is cancelled as soon aspossible, allowing the planning application to be passed.

The FOUL committee is meeting tonight to discuss all the issues.

Latest on the transfer front is that Elliott Jackson is moving to Stevenage Borough on loan until the end of the season. There is a clause to allow him to return to the Manor if required.

PRE-MEETING NEWS

In advance of this morning's Council meeting to discuss Oxford's planning application for a multiplex cinema, it seems that any prospect of the issue being resolved before Firoz Kassam's end of March deadline is doomed. Green Party councillor, Mike Woodin, has applied to have the application "called in" by the government. This means that a government minister must personally approve the application, which would result in many months of delay.

Why should we be surprised or annoyed that the Green Party has called in the application? They have a legitimate right to do so, and are acting in accordance with their political principles. Why we ever let the building of the stadium hinge on an emotive political issue such as an out-of-town multiplex development is beyond me. Many fans saw this coming a mile off...

FOUL would like as many Oxford supporters as possible to attend the 9.45 meeting (at the Town Hall) in order to show the depth of feeling of Oxford fans. There will however be no chance for any fan to speak at the gathering - it's not that sort of public meeting. Members of the FOUL committee will be there.

The relegation picture got no clearer last night as both Crewe and Bury played out goalless draws. Crewe move off the bottom for the first time this year, whilst Bury stay below Oxford on goals scored. Crewe v. Oxford on Saturday looks set to be a thriller, with the most recent result for each club being 0-0.

Oxford United have made an application for planning permission for a commercial leisure development (multiplex cinema) next to the Minchery Farm stadium site. This application is being heard in a meeting (open to the public) at 9.15 tomorrow morning. The plan is that the stadium development would be financed by selling the land (with attached planning permission) to a mutliplex cinema developer. If the planning application does not go through, there seems little hope that the finance required to complete the stadium will be found.

SCORE IN A BROTHEL...

Oxford proved that converting chances after Deano's departure is near impossible with a 0-0 against Watford. In fact Oxford showed that even creating chances is near impossible. Only one conclusion can be drawn...going down, going down, going down.

Generous quantities of salt were added to the wound by the fact that Danny Hill (free transfer a few months ago) scored a magnificent volley for Cardiff, Dave Smith (free transfer a few months ago) scored a deflected goal for Stockport, and even Phil Whelan (thankfully loaned out) got in on the act with a headed goal from a corner for Rotherham. Deano wasn't on the scoresheet for Bradford, despite their scoring four. He only came on as a sub after all the goals. Tony Wright did not feature for Swansea.

This afternoon (at 16.30) Firoz Kassam will meet with various councillors and council officials to discuss the Minchery Farm land deals. With a bit of luck, a decision will be reached. The fans might even be told about it!

A probable first on Saturday, and a sign of the times, was a match between two clubs in administration. Portsmouth v Crystal Palace ended in a 1-1 draw. Coming next season, the Administrators League...

Portsmouth have arranged a Fans United day for their home match against Barnsley on Sunday March 28th. As Oxford play their match on the Friday, it is hoped that many Us fans will make the trip to show solidarity with a fellow financially-troubled club. The day has been designated "Blue Nose Day", with blue noses on sale at £1. All proceeds will go towards alleviating Pompey's financial troubles.

Shotts rejected all of the Kosovans who were on trial at the club yesterday. Apparently they did not meet first division standard. That doesn't phase Nicky Banger...

A couple of items of interest appeared on today's Official Web Site. Firstly it would appear we're making use of Firoz Kassam's "controversial" (if you believe the prejudices of certain council members) use of his hotels to house asylum seekers. Oxford could benefit from the fact that there are some asylum-seeking footballers from Kosovo, whom we are taking on trial at Kassam's request. (Knowing British asylum law, this may well not be the only trial they undergo in this country...)

The other story makes it apparent that we are still trying to offload our promising young players without giving them enough of a chance in our first team. Tony Wright is on loan at Swansea, with a view to a permanent move. Wright always looked a good player to me, and he is rated highly by the Wales hierarchy, for whom he has played at U21 and B level. Still, reduction of our wage bill comes first. Sigh.

I felt less bad after last night's match when Radio 5 Live confirmed that all our relegation rivals had also drawn. It came as a shock this morning that Port Vale had in fact won at Norwich with a late goal. Thanks Five Live...

Last night's game is best viewed in tandem with Saturday's. Four points from the two would be good enough for me. Of course we now have to win on Saturday. How many simple chances can our players squander? How we miss Deano already! Shotts confirmed that Deano was sold mainly because he wanted to leave, rather than because of financial pressures. The bank obviously leapt in with both hands when it saw we did have some money though. Hence nothing to spend. (And I guess my theory that Deano was talking up his availability for transfer, and thus keeping his name in the papers, was justified.)

Shotts has said that he is allowed to bring in one player on loan before the end of the season. Can we have Nicolas Anelka please?

It's crunch time. If the Us fail to pick up anything at home to Huddersfield tonight, they can effectively start planning their trip to the likes of lowly Man City next season. Malcolm Shotton insists that morale is still high in the dressing room, despite the sale of Dean Windass and the lack of funds for a replacement. The team is set to be unchanged, meaning that Nicky Banger is left on the bench, ready to be unleashed on the unsuspecting Huddersfield defence at any time.

NO CASH

Unsurprisingly (this being Oxford), there is no money to spend, despite the sale of Dean Windass to Bradford. Shotts did put in an enquiry for Steve Flack of Exeter, thinking he had £200,000 to spend, but now it seems there is no money for new players. Oxford must pay both Aberdeen and the bank with the Windass money. It makes a mockery of Keith Cox's statement that we did not need to sell any more players this season. Why does this give me a bad feeling about any possible Kassam deal?

EARLIER NEWS

Well the cash problems have taken their toll, and Oxford looked on Saturday like a side that had no creativity left. There have evidently been cashflow problems at the FA as well, as they couldn't afford to pay a trained referee for the match. We made do with someone borrowed from the WBA training staff.

The match was both depressing (for our complete lack of clue, though no lack of passion), and inflammatory. Even Denis "Maestro" Smith agreed that Joey shouldn't have been sent off, and that it was indeed a corner. He did balance the books by saying he thought Gerrard should have gone. No mention of the fact that Lee Hughes got away without a card.

Apparently Exeter City have turned down a £175,000 bid from Oxford for their man-mountain striker, Steve Flack, 27, who has scored 15 goals for the Grecians this season.

There have been interesting developments at Hull, who recently bought Colin Alcide from Lincoln for £50,000. Only problem was they paid Lincoln just £10,000. When Hull failed to pay the balance by an agreed date, Lincoln told Hull that they wanted Alcide back. Shades of Windass here. Hull actually left Alcide out of their weekend fixture. This seems a little strange to me. Alcide wants to stay at Hull, and has signed a contract with them. They are his employers. Lincoln are now merely a creditor. What this does suggest, though, is that we were lucky with the Windass situation...

Portsmouth fans, who have formed a consortium similar to FOUL called Portsmouth United, have launched an appeal to save their club. The initial meeting raised £200,000, including £50,000 of cash. What is more, Portsmouth director, Terry Brady, has agreed to personally pay the wages of Brazilian midifielder Stefani Migliorazi. Brady already pays the wages of loan striker Guy Whittingham. It would be nice to have this type of director at Oxford!

So Windass has gone, and we're left with £475,000 to spend (!), assuming we bother to pay Aberdeen the £475,000 we still owe them for Windass. The Press and Journal reports that "Aberdeen are set to press debt-ridden Oxford City for payment". No wonder they're still waiting for their money!

An Aberdeen spokesperson said, "We're reasonably confident Oxford will come across with the money in the very near future having sold Windass on. The Oxford board has never hidden from the fact that they owe Aberdeen the cash in question and they let us know that his move to Bradford was on when it began to come together. There's no question of us taking legal action against Oxford to recover the money because we're satisfied that won't be necessary."

According to the official website Oxford are now paying Aberdeen the full amount owed for Windass. Shotts is not optimistic that he will get any cash to spend.

Bournemouth chairperson, Trevor Watkins, has warned cash-strapped clubs that administrators are not necessarily partial to the idea of a community-owned club. Watkins, who led a consortium of fans into a buy-out of Bournemouth, said, "Fans co-operatives are seen as irritants, there to be swatted like flies, unless they're an absolutely last resort." Bournemouth have turned the buy-out into a success, with profits of £220,000 in the first season (realised mainly through the sale of Matt Holland to Ipswich).

According to the London Evening Standard, London Irish are now considering a groundshare with fellow Rugby Union club, Harlequins, from next season.their second option is now a groundshare with Fulham. It seems like Minchery Farm has dropped down their list of priorities. Full article here.

Former Oxford winger and master of the row Z cross, Chrissy Allen, has signed for Port Vale on a free transfer from Nottingham Forest. He'll probably end up scoring against us...

Doncaster Rovers' former chairman, Ken Richardson, who was convicted last month of conspiring to burn down a stand at Belle Vue, was today sentenced to four years in prison for the offence.

LATEST NEWS - DEANO MOVES TO BRADFORD

Dean Windass has signed for Bradford City in a £950,000 transfer. Yes, Oxford have done it again; they've undersold a player. There is a stunning extra £50,000 if Bradford make it into the Premiership. So that's Bradford and Birmingham who will have to give us money if they go up. So we all support them then. Do we shit...

A couple of sources have claimed that Shotton will use some of the cash to permanently sign Paul Gerrard for £400,000. This seems slightly unlikely, as we hardly need three permanent keepers on the books. Especially when we don't have a left back.

EARLIER NEWS

It seems that pressure from the player himself might force Oxford into a U-turn in the proposed transfer of Dean Windass to Bradford City. It appears Deano has made it clear in no uncertain terms that he wishes to be allowed to speak to the Bantams. (Rumours were rife that he would "go on strike" if not allowed to have talks.) The fee is likely to be a mere £1 million, but Bradford have denied that Gordon Watson is to be included in the deal (thankfully?) Many at last night's defeat by QPR read significance into Windass' act of giving his woolly hat to a member of the crowd!

Now of course the true test of Oxford's recently found "financial stability" could be upon us. How much of the money will Shotts be given to spend before the transfer deadline? If and when Deano goes, we will need a replacement striker of some quality.

According to Shotton, the reason Deano wants to move is so that his family can move back up north. "Deano's desperate to get away, his family want to move back up north, and when a player has a mind like that, you can only hold on to him for so long," said Shotts. Perhaps Oxford should put this theory to the test by pretending to Deano that Chelsea and Arsenal have started a bidding war for him. ("Oh, boss, did I say north? I meant London...")

Despite rumours to the contrary, it seems that Deano is staying at Oxford for the time being. The club has confirmed that Bradford's bid has been rejected, and apparently the other interested club, Nottingham Forest, cannot afford a fee of over a million. The chase is sure to hot up as the transfer deadline (three weeks away) approaches...

Latest news from the Press Association is that Bradford are about to mount a new bid for Windass, which will include £500,000 rated Bantams' striker, Gordon Watson, plus a cash sum of £750,000. But TeamTalk reports that the deal is dead, and Paul Jewell is quoted as saying, "We will not be held to ransom by anybody and I won't be improving my offer. I think £1m is a generous offer for him anyway."

At one time recently we had a keeper "crisis" - now you can't move in Oxford for fear of bumping into a Us keeper. Shotts has signed Paul Gerrard on another month's loan from Everton after an impressive display against Sunderland. International bench warmer, Paul Lundin has also been snapped up on a free transfer from Swedish club, Östers IF, after playing two reserve matches for Oxford. We must suddenly be rolling in cash. Where this leaves poor old Elliott Jackson, I don't know...

Loads of excellent rumours are doing the rounds that Lundin trashed various Swedish nightspots to celebrate his contract with the Us. Oxford nightclubs beware!

Oxford have reportedly turned down a "£1 million" offer from Bradford City for Windass. Crikey - we might actually be learning how to hold on to players until we do get offered "silly money" (as Malc would put it).

According to radio reports this morning, cash-strapped Chester City, who have been in administration for five months, are close to agreeing a deal with a potential buyer. Positive news for all other clubs in trouble.

Yes, I'm back, and the page is finally being updated again! In the days I've been away :

On Saturday, Oxford continued their run of good results on TV by holding champions-elect Sunderland to a 0-0 draw. What's more all the newspapers thought it was a bad advertisement for PPV TV. Excellent. Most observers reckoned the game to be boring - personally I found it quite exciting. I did have memories of that Saturday in Sunderland to exorcise though. The Independent on Sunday went as far as to say that the match was a study of "the technical excellence of the Oxford offside trap" (or was it just that Danny Dichio is crap?) At least we didn't attempt an offside trap with five at the back (as at Ipswich)!

The Strategy and Resources committee of the City Council met last week to discuss the Minchery Farm situation. As far as I could see, there wasn't a lot to get excited about in terms of news. The Council said they were eager for the Minchery Farm development to proceed, but that a public consultation was necessary. As Firoz Kassam said, "The situation has not really changed." He also said that the Council were "not being difficult in any way" and that "The council have to go through the red tape. They are doing their best." But he did add that he was sticking to his deadline of the end of March to make his decision on whether to invest in Oxford. He would pull out sooner if the deal didn't appear right.

Bradford City are the latest club to be interested in Dean Windass. Unconfirmed reports (denied by Malcolm Shotton) suggest that they have tabled a £1.2 million bid for Deano. Forest are also said still to be planning a raid.

The following letter was sent by FOUL to the Oxford Mail on Saturday :

FOUL (Fighting for Oxford United’s Life) welcomes the positive negotiations currently being conducted between Firoz Kassam, potential new owner of Oxford United, and the City Council. We particularly applaud the new sense of urgency which has developed in recent weeks. FOUL has done much research to understand the councils position, and to suggest appropriate, cost effective, and legal ways forward.

Mr. Kassam’s proposals include much needed leisure facilities for Oxford. We live in a premier European City but lack the facilities to match. Since the effective demise of the Oxpens scheme the Minchery Farm development has become increasingly important.

As a direct result of the relocation of the football club the people of Oxford now have an opportunity to enjoy facilities this city has been deprived of for years.

The multiplex cinema will offer more viewing choice and comfort, and reduce traffic levels in central Oxford. The hotel, leisure site, and bowling alley will create employment and aid the Councils regeneration plan for this area.

The jobs created will reduce Housing Benefit payments and rent arrears, allowing more money to be spent on other, much needed areas, such as housing repairs and the homeless. It will help local businesses and allow this area to thrive at a time when traditional industries such as car manufacturing are in decline.

We hope for the continuation of professional football at Oxford, and facilities to match the status of this great city, so that we can all enjoy the spin-offs, benefits and prosperity that would be generated. Whether we follow the yellows or just enjoy a night out - at Minchery Farm there would be something for everyone.

FOUL will continue to fight for the future of Oxford United, its supporters and staff, and for the rights of people to enjoy their leisure time without having to travel to Reading, Swindon, Wycombe, and other surrounding areas.

We urge the Council to continue with the excellent progress they have made in the last few weeks, and to deliver to the people of this city facilities that will be enjoyed for generations to come. This chance may be a one off - we must not lose it.

FOUL

5 Whittle Road,Thame

foul@egroups.com

This page is maintained by James Beard.