Winger Nathan Holland was the only West Ham United loanee to feature over the weekend, making his return from injury for Oxford United.
The 23-year-old had missed the U’s previous three matches with a reported hamstring injury, but featured for the final 25 minutes of Oxford’s 2-0 defeat to Lincoln City at Sincil Bank on Saturday.
By the time he was already introduced, however, former Academy teammate Anthony Scully had given Lincoln a half-time lead, cutting inside from the left and curled in a sweeping effort – his fourth goal against Oxford in consecutive games.
And the Imps doubled that advantage shortly after half-time when Morgan Whittaker buried a low effort inside the bottom corner, nine minutes before Holland was introduced.
With Lincoln remaining on top, however, Holland had little opportunity to sparkle as he has done so far this season in Oxford colours, and the U’s difficult afternoon was completed when Herbie Kane picked up a straight red card to seal their fate.
Holland and Oxford slipped to fifth in the EFL League One table as a result of the defeat, with their next fixture a trip to third-placed Wycombe Wanderers on Saturday.
