The Iron's five-game winning run came to an end at Glanford Park on Saturday, as the League One leaders had to settle for a point against Oxford United.
Duane Holmes had given his side the lead in the first half, glancing in a header from a Josh Morris cross. But the visitors got a leveller early in the second period through another header, this time from Phil Edwards.The first opportunity of the game fell to Scunthorpe after neat work on the right hand side with Morris and Holmes both involved. It was the latter who dashed to the byline and crossed, but Tom Hopper couldn’t direct his header goalwards.
The next chance wouldn’t come until the 25th minute when Hopper’s shot was blocked, and Morris followed up to force Simon Eastwood into a fingertip save. The resulting corner came to nothing.
Van Veen had Eastwood scrambling 13 minutes before the break when he picked the ball up and had an effort from 25-yards out, but the shot went narrowly wide of the post.
Oxford were handed their first proper opportunity a minute after the van Veen chance, as Chris Maguire’s free kick from the edge of the box was parried out for a corner by Luke Daniels.
United cleared the corner and broke on Oxford and, when Morris picked the ball up on the right wing, he curled in a beauty onto the head of Holmes to give the Iron a 1-0 lead.
The goal would be the last action of the first half, which saw the Iron ahead.
The U’s came out strongly in the second half and John Lundstram forced Daniels into a good save. Sadly, from the corner, Oxford found a leveller through the head of Edwards.
The Iron were then handed a golden opportunity to re-take the lead from a free kick on the edge of the U’s box, but van Veen couldn’t keep his effort down.
Oxford went forward on their next attack and, from a long throw, an attacker lofted it back into danger, and Daniels had to parry it onto the bar and out for a corner, which the home side defended well.
After 59 minutes Morris won a free-kick on the right, which he then whipped in - only for it to be cleared into the feet of Charlie Goode. The young centre-back showed great footwork to take the ball down before curling one in the arms of Eastwood.
The away side were then gifted a golden opportunity to take the lead after a slip in the Iron defence but, after the ball was played across the box into the path of Kane Hemmings, he mis-hit his shot completely.
Morris went close on 70 minutes as Conor Townsend crossed a beauty on to the Iron top scorer's head, but unfortunately for he and United it went over.
The men in claret and blue continued to pile the pressure on the visitors when Morris’ free kick from the by-line was headed inches wide by the rising van Veen.
Substitute Hakeeb Adelakun had only been on the pitch a few seconds when he got his first chance to run at the U’s defence but, after skipping past two defenders, the final ball into the box was blocked and parried by Eastwood.
After 87 minutes, the Iron got another chance, but Ness’ first time shot went just wide, when quite a few were on their feet expecting it to hit the net.
Oxford then went close a minute later, when Daniels was forced into a smart save from a Maguire free kick which was heading into the bottom corner.
There were four minutes of injury time added on but neither side could force a winner, and the match ended at 1-1.
TEAM LINE-UPS
Scunthorpe United: Daniels, Wiseman, Wallace, Smallwood (67, Ness), van Veen, Morris, Bishop, Hopper (Madden, 59), Holmes (Adelakun, 82), Goode, Townsend.
Substitutes not used: Anyon, Williams, Adelakun, Mantom, Clarke.
Oxford United: Eastwood, Skarz, Lundstram, Nelson, Maguire, MacDonald (Taylor, 86), Hemmings (Roberts, 80), Edwards, Hall (Johnson, 60), Ledson, Dunkley.
Substitutes not used: Buchel, Ruffels, Rothwell, Raglan.
Attendance: 4,338.
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