Kidlington will have their sights firmly fixed on Marc Cooper when they visit Cleethorpes Town in The FA Vase fifth round on Saturday.
Cooper has been in prolific form this season, as he was last term, to fire Cleethorpes into a promotion challenge in the Northern Counties East League Premier Division.
They have also found their way to the fifth round of The Vase – the Owls’ best ever run in the competition – and only Kidlington stand between them and the quarter-finals.
Cleethorpes Town v Kidlington
The FA Vase
Fifth Round Proper
3pm, Saturday 30 January 2016
Winners receive £2500 from prize fund
By Paddy von Behr
Cleethorpes come into the game off the back of a 1-0 win against Albion Sports – Cooper unsurprisingly grabbing the game’s only goal and his 26th of the season.
Kidlington, on the other hand, suffered a shock to the system last time out, failing to find the net for the first time since August as they were beaten 2-0 by Highmoor-Ibis in the Hellenic League Premier Division.
And Greens manager Martin Wilkinson knows returning to scoring form before Cooper gets a chance to influence the tie will be vital.
"I know a bit about them," he said. "I have done a little bit of homework. They are a severe attacking threat and Cooper in particular will need managing well.
"We lost for the first time since October on Saturday and the last time we failed to score a goal was in August. We just didn’t perform and we accept the defeat and will try to put it right.
"Because we are going so well there is always potential for us to rest on our laurels at times so it’s a useful reminder."
They won’t be resting on those laurels this weekend, especially with Cooper to look after – and Cleethorpes manager Marcus Newell makes no secret of who is his dangerman.
"I think he is the top scorer in the league with 26 and he got about 30 last season," said Newell.
"He is not a handful in the sense that he’s physical but he is good on the ball. He has been here for three years now and he’s a big player for us.
"We have got a young side and the biggest problem is consistency within games. Once we get ourselves at it, we are not a bad team.
"We are punching above our weight in a lot of ways. We have had a couple of good runs in The FA Cup but this is the furthest we have been in The Vase.”
For Wilkinson, however, the target is to end this particular run on Saturday and keep his Kidlington side firmly on track for a trip to Wembley.
"It is about performing to our best, without a doubt," added the Greens boss. "I’m not trying to get them back to Kidlington, that’s for sure. We are going there to win it."
You can watch Monday's FA Vase fifth round proper draw LIVE via the Periscope app or through @FA from 11am on Monday 1 February.
