DAVID Oldfield was thrilled to see Oxford City rewarded for going toe-to-toe with fellow high-fliers Dulwich Hamlet.

The hosts were deserved 2-0 winners in the Vanarama National League South clash, with Joe Iaciofano on target before the break and Canice Carroll scoring his first goal for the club later on.

It saw City climb to third and leapfrog Dulwich, who started the day second in the table.

Read the match report here

Oldfield’s side are halfway through a tough run of fixtures against the other four teams in the top five, but they followed last weekend’s stalemate at leaders Dartford with another good result.

The City manager said: “I think it’s a big three points.

“We’re in the middle of a really tricky period, but every game is so difficult.

“We know the quality of Dulwich – it’s a great club, the manager and staff are fantastic and the players are really good.

“It’s a big result and it’s all due to the players. They worked really hard, we were a collective group, we managed to take our opportunities and defended well too.”

City played with real intensity throughout the 90 minutes and looked more likely to score even after Carroll’s 69th-minute goal.

Oldfield added: “We definitely try to play with some energy and I think the boys are willing to do that.

“That starts physically, but really it’s psychologically.

“We are very proud of them for that, sometimes we don’t quite make it but overall we try to be energetic and play as well.”

City are in a rich vein of form, conceding just once in their last six games to help build a seven-match unbeaten run.

But with three points separating second and ninth in National League South, Oldfield is not getting ahead of himself.

He said: “The league is so tight.

“We don’t pay a huge amount of attention, because one minute you can be here and the next you can be significantly below that.

“We have to keep our feet on the ground and keep trying to progress as a club.

“Some of the stats have been good, but it resets every game and we need to pay attention to our preparation this week and are ready to play next week.”

Carroll’s goal was a great moment for the 22-year-old, who is back in the city three years after leaving Oxford United.

The midfielder said: “The ball was rolling back with a bit of pace and you just want to get a good connection on it.

“I tried to keep my head over the ball and guide it in. Luckily enough, it found the bottom corner.”

He added: “I thought we were brilliant, the gaffer wants us to press and as a club it’s how we want to go forwards.

“High energy, getting after people is what we want to stamp on the league and we’re doing that.

“It took us a couple of games to gel but that’s kind of normal with a new team.

“It was always going to happen, but only losing once (in the league) says a lot about this team.”