He picked him up on the A23 at 5.30: a race against time. They finally arrived at Oxford’s impressive stadium at 7.22, 23 minutes before kick-off. The lad looked calm in the circumstances. Maybe he was just glad to get out of the car. He’d never met any of the players: he probably only knew their names from watching at the Dripping Pan. From the off it was vital that our defenders protected the lad. And they did a brilliant job of it.

We lost the game, 1-0, to a dodgy penalty. But I’m proud to say that that was the only shot on target that Oxford had all night. Our defence was superb all through the game, and I felt over the ninety minutes we more than matched them. In the last minute we should have scored an equaliser. The ball rolled along their goal line and one of their defenders cleared it, with everyone flying in. I’ll never understand how we didn’t manage to score that, and take the game to extra time.

After the game I made a special point of praising the young lad, who dealt well with the little he had to do. He must have felt ten feet tall. Meanwhile we were out of the competition, and we’d picked up a couple of new injuries - Kenno’s groin and Wormy’s ankle - which will see two crucial players out for at least a couple of weeks. We face Sutton at home on Saturday: by then I’ll have signed a keeper. But it’ll be all hands on deck from the bare bones of the squad in a game we need to win. This is the time I need everything I can get from my team, and from the Lewes supporters, too. Hope to see you there.”