MATT Paterson hit a hat-trick as Oxford City bounced back from their agonising last-gasp defeat in the Emirates FA Cup on Saturday with a superb 3-1 win over Truro City last night.
There was a fear the weekend’s 95th-minute loss to Notts County could impact on their bid to pull away from the Vanarama National League South relegation zone.
But Mark Jones’s side produced a fantastic display against their high-flying visitors, who could have moved to within a point of top spot with victory.
They took the lead in the 18-minute when Christian Oxlade-Chamberlain fizzed a ball across goal that was parried out for Paterson to tap in.
The City striker got his second 17 minutes after half-time, racing on to a Godfrey Poku pass before slotting home to double the lead.
Truro hit back almost immediately, however, with a goal from Andrew Neal.
But City clinched the win in stoppage time when Zac McEachran gave Paterson a tap-in to complete his treble and a vital result.
Oxford City: Stevens, Oxlade-Chamberlain (Jones 78), Pearce, Poku, Navarro, Oastler, McEachran, Fofana, Paterson, Sinclair, Fleet. Subs not used: Forde, Hirst, Tutton, Godwin-Malife.
Banbury United scored two goals in five first-half minutes on their way to a 3-1 victory against Merthyr Town in the Evo-Stik South League Premier Division.
Conor McDonagh fired Mike Ford’s side into the lead after 22 minutes, before Luke Carnell headed home No 2 soon after.
The hosts pulled a goal back eight minutes from time through Ryan Prosser, but Leam Howards sealed victory with No 3 in the 87th minute.
In the West Division, Kidlington proved no match for high-flying Salisbury Town, going down 6-1.
Mark Janes scored early in the second half, but to compound a miserable evening, Elliott Osborne-Ricketts was shown a straight red card late on.
Joe Guest’s 61st-minute own goal gave North Leigh a 1-0 victory at Paulton Rovers, in a game that saw a delayed kick-off with the referee stuck in traffic.
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