By the time they next play in the FA Trophy, Oxford, and for that matter, rivals Stevenage and York, will have a clearer picture of how hard the challenge for promotion is going to be.

Before the Trophy quarter-finals on February 20, Oxford have four league games – against Kidderminster, Luton, Histon and Rushden.

“They’re all testing fixtures, dangerous games,” said boss Chris Wilder.

“They’re maybe not ar-ound us in terms of points, but they’re dangerous opposition and are teams that I think can take points off any team in this league.

“We’ll be hoping they do do that when they play other opposition around the top of the league, and we’ve got to make sure we stay patient, and our crowd stays patient.

“But we start off on a level playing field, and it’s going to take a lot of hard work to win these games.”

As it stands, Oxford have only one blank midweek remaining, though playing on Easter Monday might give some scope to then play on the Wednesday or Thursday that week.