MARK Jones says Oxford City will be raring to go against high-flying Hampton & Richmond Borough after their mini-break.
The Vanarama National League South side enjoyed a free Saturday last weekend following their early exit in the Buildbase FA Trophy.
But manager Jones says the break has afforded City the chance to recharge their batteries after their historic run to the second round of the Emirates FA Cup.
Hampton are on an impressive sequence of eight successive league wins, with tomorrow’s clash marking the start of a busy festive period.
But Jones expects his side to be refreshed and ready to go.
He said: “It certainly wasn’t a bad thing that we had a spare weekend.
“Obviously we would have liked to have been in the next round of the trophy, but we’d had a very tough month, so we were all grateful for a bit of a break.”
Hampton’s outstanding run has put them level on points with Dartford and Braintree at the top of the league.
But Jones thinks his side will compete with their visitors as they bid to pull further away from the relegation zone.
He said: “They’ve won eight on the bounce, which is an amazing run.
“We know we’ll have to produce an excellent performance to get anything from the game.
“But we are now refocused after our little break, starting from tomorrow.
“We’re going to look at our games in little blocks and set small targets. We’re playing a really good side, but when we’re at home, we usually give most teams a good competitive game.”
Freddie Grant (ankle) is rated 50/50, while Rob Sinclair (calf) is the other injury doubt.
TOMORROW’S TEAM
Oxford City (v Hampton & Richmond, home): from Stevens, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Jones, Poku, Oastler, McEachran, Fofana, Sinclair, Paterson, Hirst, Pearce, Tutton, Forde, Navarro, Godwin-Malife, Sanders, Grant.
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