JAMES Beadle believes Oxford United’s pre-season win against Sky Bet Championship side Swansea City demonstrates that the club can compete at the top end of League One this campaign.
Beadle has joined the U’s on loan from Premier League outfit Brighton & Hove Albion following a season of struggle for United.
After regularly mixing it in and around the play-off places, the U’s became entangled in a relegation scrap before all but securing safety on the penultimate day of last season.
The mood is different now though after an encouraging summer transfer window so far, and the hope is that the club can once again fight towards the top of the third tier.
Speaking after the 1-0 victory against Swansea, Beadle said: “This is a real confidence boost for us as players, knowing that we want to achieve is realistic.
“We want to go high up the league and really do well, and I think that showed tonight against a really good opposition.
“It’s what you want to do as a goalie, keep clean sheets and win games, and it’s the perfect start really.
“I had a pretty comfortable save but that’s what I’m here to do – make saves and that’s what I enjoy doing.
“I’m quite a relaxed person on the pitch and I enjoy playing, there’s no point being nervous or tense – just play football and have fun.”
Discussing the style of play that head coach Liam Manning is looking to implement, Beadle said: “The lads are really good, the gaffer’s really good and the coaches have been really good, so I’ve had no problems so far and long may that continue.
“The way we want to play this season, playing out from the back, relationships are key and I thought tonight we were excellent playing out from the back, especially in the first half.
“Nowadays, if you want to play at the top level, you’ve got to be able to do both and that’s what I’m working on at the moment.
“The way we play at Brighton is very similar to the way the gaffer wants to play so it’s been a good transition here.
“The standards here are very good but the standards there are a different level, but I’ve been really impressed since I came in – I just cant wait to get started in the league now and play some games properly.
“The way we want to play, there’ll be things that go wrong but if you’re making mistakes doing the right thing, then hold your hands up.
“Once things happen, you can’t change it and you’ve just got to move on to the next thing and approach that in the same way as before.”