DES Buckingham predicts that Owen Dale’s first goal for Oxford United will be the first of many for the club.

Dale arrived from Blackpool for an undisclosed fee on January deadline day, and while he had recorded two assists, he was still seeking his first U’s goal going into the Easter Monday clash at home to Fleetwood Town.

The 25-year-old winger found the back of the net though, with United’s third goal in the 4-0 victory.

U’s head coach Buckingham said: “The way we want to play is so important that those front three and the two behind them have to contribute heavily towards how we want to play.

“That’s in terms of assists and goals. We can’t be reliant on the nine in Mark Harris, or whoever plays there.

“They have to contribute heavily towards those goalscoring moments, both now with Murph [Josh Murphy] hitting really good form, and Owen Dale adding that goal which I’m sure will be the first of many for this football club.”

On the opposite wing to Dale, former Cardiff City wide man Murphy has become arguably United’s key performer, and bagged an assist for Harris with a lovely cross into the six-yard box against the Cod Army.

Buckingham said of Murphy: “He just seems very settled, very happy, and he’s very clear with what he’s doing, and more importantly, he seems to be enjoying his football, which I’m delighted to see him doing because I know he’s had a pretty rough ride of it here over the past 18 months before I got here, through injuries and other things.

“He’s a good person, and a great player, which he’s really starting to demonstrate right now, and he’s a very important part of what we want to do.”