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Oxford to beat Macclesfield @ 11/10 (stan james)

Oxford havent had the best of starts to their 1st season back in the football league, playing 4 ,ending with 3 draws and 1 loss, and scoring just 1 goal in the process ! They look a very defensively effective team at this level , and once the goals start coming they`ll shoot up the table - a fact clearly not lost on their manager , who has just bought striker Tom Craddock from non league Luton this week. Two 0-0s draws away to Burton and Wycombe were very good performances, just missing the key vital finish at the end. With Constable to partner Craddock , that problem could now be solved. They also beat Bristol Rovers in the Carling cup 6-1, which can only bolster confidence. This is a team that are clearly a tough proposition to beat, and could well get higher than mid table given a few goals. In last years promotion season they lost just twice at home and conceded just 10 goals in 22 games, whilst scoring 36. It may have been a league lower, but theres very little between the conference and division 2 nowadays.

Morecambe have lost both away games so far, and are winless in 4 games in total, and the two away defeats just so happened to be at the same grounds where Oxford have managed 2 0-0 draws this year. They lost 3-2 at Burton, a team who dont score many, and 2-0 at Wycombe, to follow on from last years poor away form. Even last year when Morecambe made the playoffs they won only 6 away from 24 games, and theyve always struggled away from home. Its going to be a long season for them and trips like this arent what they need at this moment in time against an Oford outfit who will be bouyant after the 6-1 cup win and will look to get a run going.

Grim