Fans remember Oxford United Wembley heroics in 1986 PART TWO

Goals from Trevor Hebberd, Ray Houghton, and Jeremy Charles secured a surprisingly comfortable 3-0 win over favourites Queens Park Rangers.

Yellows supporter Graham Dunn, 55, was another who was 15 at the time of the triumph, and found himself at Wembley in his early days following the U’s.

“It was the most normal extraordinary day,” Dunn reminisced.

“You could say I was a glory hunter, having fallen for Oxford during their Milk Cup run two years earlier. But the thing was, Oxford kept doing the unthinkable.

Malcolm Shotton lifts the Milk Cup with Oxford United (Image: Getty Images)

“On the one hand being at Wembley watching Maurice Evans lead Oxford out – something that happened to other teams, not us – seemed surprisingly normal once we were actually doing it.

“We had been pretty dismal since the semi-final and didn’t go in with much hope, so were determined to make the most of the day out. I think we arrived at Wembley three or four hours before the game, and just lapped up the novelty of us being part of a cup final.

“Then the sun came out, Hebberd broke free and, in my mind at least, we were never losing. It is a moment that can never be topped – though it was only a moment and I do kind of wish I’d had the 40 years of supporting pain before rather than after cup glory – as that might have better prepared me for what was to come.”

Former Oxford United chairman (left) celebrates the Milk Cup victory with Malcolm Shotton (Image: Oxford Mail)

Oxford fan and former football scout Darren Britnell, 57, was an apprentice with the U’s at the time, offering a different perspective on the day from behind the scenes.

“One of the most stand out memories was the boots that the players wore on the day,” he recalled

“Different players were sponsored by some of the top boot manufacturers and were supplied boots and tracksuits. These, whether it be their training or match day boots had to be cleaned and polished so your face could be seen in them!

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Oxford United fans outside Wembley for the Milk Cup final 1986 (Image: Mark Griffin)

“This took another twist when Ken Fish asked to do the same procedure, but then paint each logo on every boot with white paint so that it stood out for the cameras!

“We had to use an oil based paint which was accompanied with a high, almost toxic odour making us feel light headed. It took us days because every adidas stripe, every Nike tick etc had to have three coats to meets Ken’s requirements.”

Oxford are set to commemorate the cup win at this evening’s home match against Wrexham with cup-winning players in attendance at the Kassam Stadium.