Ardley pleased with display

AFC Wimbledon boss Neal Ardley was probably the happier of the two managers after his side earned a 0-0 draw with Oxford.

Both teams were looking to chalk up a third win in succession, but in the end neither had the guile to break down the opposition's defence in a game in which clear-cut chances were few and far between. But for the Dons, at least they stopped the rot against Oxford, having lost all previous eight encounters. Ardley said: "I'm pleased with my boys because we've had five hard games in two weeks. It's been a tough schedule for us. "Recently I've seen a big pick-up in Oxford United's form so we have to be happy with a draw here. "We came here with three centre forwards, so we were brave, and it's ironic then that we should draw 0-0. "But I thought we had the best chances of the game. "I just asked our goalkeeper James Shea what he'd really had to do, and he said 'just a couple of routine saves' so that showed how well we defended. "It was a team effort from us. We came brave and the boys put in a real shift." Oxford's head coach Michael Appleton said his team lacked quality in the final third, but he was satisfied with the way the U's defended as they chalked up a clean sheet for the second game running. Appleton said: "I think you've got to give a lot of credit to Wimbledon. They slowed the game down really well. "We built up some momentum with a good first 15 minutes, but then whenever we got into the final third, we either picked the wrong option, or failed to beat the first man with the cross, which was disappointing. "But overall the players were satisfied with their performance. "I thought our patience was really, really good, and we're happy with the way we defended, we just lacked a bit in the final third. "But our football was fine. We weren't prepared to be a pub team and just throw the ball forward." A blow for the U's was losing 18-year-old striker James Roberts just after the hour mark, when he pulled up suddenly on a sprint to the ball with what looked like a hamstring tear. Roberts had made a big name for himself by scoring three goals in his first two starts for the club. Appleton said: "We won't know how bad it is with James until at least Monday. The good thing, though, is that he came off straight away, so there's no danger he did any more damage to it. "But it's a shame for him because he was really enjoying being in the side." Dons created the clearer chances in the first half and Matt Tubbs went close with an angled side-foot volley that Ryan Clarke turned around a post. Adebayo Azeez rifled a shot into the side netting, and only a brilliant saving challenge by U's skipper Jake Wright stopped Tubbs when he broke free. United's best opportunity came from Alfie Potter, who cut in from the left and hammered in a 20-yard shot straight at keeper Shea. Danny Hylton had a couple of powerful shots in the second half and at the other end Adebayo Akinfenwa smashed a half-volley wide. But overall, both keepers had a quiet afternoon. Breaking news, transfer gossip, line ups and goal alerts from your football club - delivered direct to your mobile. Sign up for Sky Sports Alerts