Northampton Town vs Oxford United. Sky Bet League Two.
Sixfields StadiumAttendance6,860.
Saturday 7 April 2012 07:09, UK
Substitute Brett Williams grabbed a dramatic winner as Northampton beat play-off chasing Oxford 2-1 in a keenly-contested derby.
Luke Guttridge gave Cobblers the lead inside the first minute. Adebayo Akinfenwa's deft pass picked out Guttridge after he ghosted into the box and he beat Ryan Clarke with a superb chip from 15 yards. Northampton came close to doubling their advantage on more than one occasion but it took just five second-half minutes for Oxford to level. Neal Kitson kept out a point-blank header from Michael Duberry but Cristian Montano found the bottom corner with a low drive from the edge of the box. Adam Chapman had a great opportunity to put Oxford in front in the 59th minute after he was tripped in the box by Blair Adams. But for the second game in succession Kitson pulled off a great save from Chapman's ensuing spot-kick. Oxford continued to have the better of the second half and Duberry missed a good opportunity from close range late on, firing over from Montano's low cross. But Williams popped up in the final minute to win possession and cut inside to beat Clarke with a low drive from the edge of the area. A hotly-contested derby, which threatened to boil over at times, ended with Duberry being dismissed for his second caution in injury time.
