Today marks the one-year anniversary since Des Buckingham was appointed as the new manager of Oxford United.
The Oxford-born head coach returned to the club following the sudden departure of Liam Manning, and guided the U’s to promotion back to the second tier.
One Year of Des Buckingham
Manning Departure
When Liam Manning left Oxford to join Bristol City, it came as a shock to the majority of U’s fans.
The former MK Dons head coach had guided the U’s to safety the previous season after Karl Robinson was dismissed and started the new campaign on fire with 11 wins from the first 15 League One games.
His departure came with the club sitting in second place and playing some very entertaining football.
Shaky Start
Buckingham was appointed but it took five league games before picking up his first victory. Defeat at Cheltenham in his opening fixture was followed by a home draw against Bolton. The U’s then lost heavily at Peterborough before a 1-1 draw in the first Thames Valley derby at Reading in over 20 years.
That first win did come in style at home against Burton, and Buckingham oversaw victories over Grimsby and Forest Green in the FA Cup and Football League Trophy before that loss against the Posh.
From there, results would be mixed. The U’s would win just three of their next ten games, losing six, including a 6-2 thrashing at Coventry in the FA Cup.
Mixed Results
The final game of that run of games was a credible 2-2 draw at home against eventual champions, Portsmouth. From there, Buckingham would oversee a six game unbeaten run, but five of those ended in draws.
Defeats against Leyton Orient and Portsmouth followed before a nervy victory over Cheltenham. But then came the turning point as Oxford were humiliated on Sky TV against Bolton, losing 5-0 in Greater Manchester.
The Final Push
From there, Buckingham’s side would lose just once from their final eight league games, winning five, including a magnificent 5-0 victory over Peterborough.
A 2-1 win away at Exeter on the final day, coupled with results going their way, meant the U’s would end the campaign in the playoffs, but they would be up against a side that had outclassed Buckingham earlier in the campaign in Peterborough.
The Playoffs
Underdogs for the playoffs, Oxford welcomed the Posh in the first leg. In what was a nervy affair, an Elliott Moore header in the second half was enough to give the U’s a slender advantage heading into the second leg.
But on their last visit to London Road, Buckingham saw his side crumble to a 3-0 defeat. Oxford fell behind but a Cameron Brannagan penalty before the break, followed by some top saves from Jamie Cumming, meant a route to Wembley was secured.
However, the opposition at Wembley would be the side that oversaw Oxford’s darkest day of the season under the new head coach – Bolton.
Again, his side were the underdogs but backed by over 30,000 fans, a Josh Murphy brace got the job job and Oxford, led by their hometown hero, returned to the second tier for the first time in 25 years.
The Championship
A busy summer in terms of recruitment was needed ahead of the new campaign and the successful spending spree immediately made an impact with results on the field, particularly at home.
An opening day win over Norwich was followed up with away defeats at Coventry and Blackburn respectively, but the performances were good.
Further victories at Grenoble Road against Preston and Stoke followed before defeat against Manning at Bristol City.
Then came a bit of a slump. The first dropped points at home, albeit in a goalless draw against Burnley, was followed up by their first points on the road at Luton and Portsmouth.
Another succession of draws followed against West Brom and Derby at home before the first comprehensive loss of the season at Sunderland.
A first home defeat then came against Swansea but Buckingham’s side bounced back with a win over Hull, before putting in arguably their strongest away performance of the campaign despite a narrow defeat at Watford.
Des Buckingham: The Local Lad Doing Good
To summarise, it was a romantic homecoming for Des Buckingham. However, he took over from Manning with the club in a strong position so he was right not to change too much, but when the results started to suffer, he wasn’t afraid to ring the changes.
After that thumping at Bolton, there was a split amongst the fans as to whether or not he was the right man to lead them, particularly having been second in the league when Manning left.
But then he went above and beyond, delivering promotion for the club for the first time since Michael Appleton in 2016. Then, to sustain a string of promising performances and results at the next level has been nothing short of inspirational.
His adaptability in games has been a real highlight and his side, despite losing six games in the league this season, have been in every game so far.
