ROSS Jenkins believes his Oxford City team must focus on themselves rather than worrying about their opponents as they build up to their play-off final this weekend.

The Hoops welcome St Albans City to Court Place Farm in the Vanarama National League South play-off final on Sunday afternoon, with the visitors boasting a particular threat in Shaun Jeffers.

The 31-year-old striker finished as the second-highest scorer in National League South this campaign, with his 28 goals so far this year earning him a spot in the division’s team of the season.

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Jenkins though was reassured enough by what he saw from his defence in the semi-final against Worthing, to be optimistic that they can repeat the trick against Jeffers and St Albans.

“We know of Shaun, we know him from last season and this season,” said Jenkins.

“We know what he’s fully capable of. I think our defence has been really strong this season, there’s been a big improvement defensively as a whole team, from probably one or two seasons ago.

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“As a team, we’re a lot more organised and it feels like that on the pitch.

“I don’t think we’ve got anything to fear, we faced a Worthing front three who are very lively and tricky, and we managed to keep them really quiet.

“The importance is that we look after the basics of our team first.

“We do all the basics that we’ve been doing all season and really hone in on those fundamentals, and hopefully we’ll get a good response.”

At the other end of the pitch, St Albans ended the regular league season with the fourth-tightest defence in the whole of National League South.

Jenkins though is focusing on what his own side is capable of.

He said: “The main importance from the result against Worthing was that we looked after our performance.

“It’s a one-off game, and I think form and stats go out the window.

“Ten per cent from every player increases so what you think of a player during the season – he’ll give another 10 or 15 per cent on Sunday, and he might look a completely different player.

“The adrenaline, the occasion and the atmosphere will contribute to players’ increased performance or negative performance.

“The main thing is that we concentrate on our own performance, and understand there’s a big challenge in front of us.

“We have to respect it and go beyond it, and work harder, and after that, our quality will come out.”