NINETY-NINE per cent of Oxford United's following will be delighted with the news that Paul Moody is set to return in today's Division 3 game against Scunthorpe United at The Kassam Stadium.

The one per cent who won't be quite so chuffed are the bookies.

They were cleaned out by fans betting on Moody to be first goalscorer in his first home match back, against Southend on September 22, and he duly obliged.

A great many bet on Moody again in the next home game, against Plymouth on October 6. And he obliged again.

Neil Astor, a partner in Matchday Bookmakers, who have outlets at The Kassam Stadium, admitted: "We probably take at least two-thirds of our first-goalscorer bets on Paul Moody, and for his first game back it was well over 80 per cent. It cost us a lot of money that first week.

"He was 4-1 then and we are adjusting our odds accordingly. But he'll be 4-1 again today."

Rumours were rife that one punter had staked £500 on Moody to score first against Southend. However, Astor said: "I'd heard those rumours too, but they weren't true. Yet the amount we take each match certainly runs into four figures."

He added: "There's one lady who used to bet blindly on Moody during his first spell with the club. She won so much from us in the Beech Road that she came back once and said she'd just been to Australia on holiday, and had paid for it all through her winnings on Moody!

"But I've got nothing against him playing. The first week we suffered a bit of a loss, but I'd much rather he was scoring and we were winning and climbing up the league."

United's 6ft 3in centre forward missed Tuesday's LDV Vans Trophy defeat at Northampton because of a back strain but is expected to return, and will probably link up with Manny Omoyinmi up front.

Martin Thomas is out with a fractured toe, which could keep him sidelined for up to six weeks, while Paul Tait has not recovered from his Achilles injury.

Scunthorpe have lost just one of their last ten, but a lot of those have been draws.

Oxford Utd: (probable) McCaldon, Guyett, Bolland, Hatswell, Stockley, Savage, Folland, Whitehead, Moody, Omoyinmi. Subs from: Hackett, Powell, Brooks, Knight, Richardson, Quinn.

Scunthorpe Utd: (from) Evans, Stanton, Dawson, Jackson, Cotterill, Hodges, Calvo-Garcia, Kell, Beagrie, Carruthers, Torpey, Barwick, Sheldon, Quailey, Ridley, Brough, Bennion.