OXFORD City Stars moved off the bottom of the table with a 2-2 draw against London Raiders at Oxpens.

The point was enough to leapfrog Cardiff Devils in English National South League Division 1 and ensured the weekend finished on a high, following a 9-5 defeat at high-flying Invicta Dynamos.

The meeting with the Raiders came a fortnight after a fiery clash between the sides.

While the fireworks in that game came at the end, most of the scoring on Sunday was at the start.

Any late arrivals in the bumper crowd of more than 500 would have missed Evan Mackintosh’s opener, which came after just 77 seconds.

Jacob Ranson quickly levelled, but with less than four minutes on the clock Alan Green made it 2-1 by firing in from an acute angle.

Green was the centre of attention in the second period, when a collision saw his stick go into the mouth of Jakub Kostelansky, drawing blood.

The Raiders import was able to return, prompting the referee to downgrade the penalty which will ensure Green will avoid disciplinary action.

The hosts, wearing the special yellow shirts emphatically backed in a fans’ vote to be worn in the remaining home games, survived the powerplay.

But Tom Davis made it 2-2 late in the period and despite chances at both ends in the final frame, neither side could find a winner.

Stars showed encouraging signs against the Dynamos, where they were in the game until late on.

Mackintosh scored twice, while Joe Edwards, Adam Harris and Joe Oliver were also on target.