GRAHAM Westley believes Oxford United’s new signings will help to make life difficult for Stevenage tomorrow.

Brian Howard and Tyrone Barnett have made their debuts for the club in the last week, after playing at a higher level.

The pair were influential as United beat Accrington Stanley 3-1 in midweek to end their wait for a first Sky Bet League Two victory.

They are set to start tomorrow when Stevenage visit and Westley thinks the added quality changes United’s threat.

  • Latest United news:

He said: “Sometimes if you’ve got one or two who are struggling to get to the level and then you replace them with one or two who are good at the level, it can make a world of difference.

“We have to go into the game recognising that they had a good home victory the other night and recognising that we’re going to have to do a lot of things right to get a point or three.”

The two clubs did not meet until 2006, but quickly developed a rivalry in the race for promotion out of the Conference.

It reached a climax in 2010, when Stevenage chased down United to win the league, while Chris Wilder’s side went up via the play-offs.

Much has changed since, but the struggles left Westley with a respect for United.

He said: “Whoever’s in charge as a manager, a club like that with a supporter base as strong and passionate as that is never going to be an easy proposition.

“I would never underestimate a football club like Oxford United.”

  • Do you want alerts delivered straight to your phone via our WhatsApp service? Text NEWS or SPORT or NEWS AND SPORT, depending on which services you want, and your full name to 07767 417704. Save our number into your phone’s contacts as Oxford Mail WhatsApp and ensure you have WhatsApp installed.