ELLIOTT Moore cannot wait to lead Oxford United out for their first game in the second tier of English football for more than 25 years.
The U’s welcome Norwich City to Grenoble Road tomorrow afternoon on what is sure to be a memorable occasion for the club.
United’s last game in the second tier was back in May 1999, a 5-0 win over Stockport County at the Manor Ground.
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The Kassam Stadium has never played host to Sky Bet Championship football, but that is soon to change, and U’s skipper Moore is eagerly anticipating the clash against the Canaries.
He said: “It was an incredible feeling to walk out at Wembley in front of the crowd, and to help be a part of that was massive for me personally, and to do this as well this season is going to be an incredible feeling.”
Moore added: “I’m very excited and I think I speak for everyone involved with this club, that it’s the biggest season, certainly since I’ve been here. It’s exciting and we can’t wait to get going on Saturday.
“It’s going to be a long season. The 46 games come thick and fast, and it’s about staying calm through the bad times, and also the good times.
“We’ve got to stay level-headed. There are going to be a lot of games, and it’s about taking the positives from each.
“Expectations have changed from previous seasons. I think that suits us. We go into each game, and we know what we can do, and it’s about showing everyone else what we can do.
“We know what everyone thinks. They think we’re the underdogs going into this season.
“We know the quality that we’ve added with the signings, and we know what we’ve got in the building.
“It’s about putting that all together and piecing that together, and showing what we can do on the pitch.
“The culture that we had at the end of last season has gone into this, and it’s about adding the strength in depth that we have, and the quality to build on that.”
In defence though, United have only added full backs Jack Currie and Peter Kioso so far during the summer transfer window, with the majority of additions in midfield and out wide.
Moore said: “All the signings have brought in quality and definitely squad depth, which is what you need in these 46 massive games.
“We’ve had a good defensive unit, and whether they bring someone in, or some other people in, who knows, and we’ll see.
“Whoever is out there is definitely going to be able to handle what we’re going to come up against.”