Oxford United defender Luke O'Brien thankful for chance

Oxford United's new signing Luke O'Brien says he is determined to help the club return to winning ways after they rescued him from unemployment.

Left-back O'Brien, 24, had been without a club since leaving Exeter in the summer but was given a short-term contract by the U's last week.

And the former Bradford player says he is thankful for the chance from Oxford.

"It has been difficult so to get this chance is great," O'Brien told BBC Radio Oxford.

"I had the opportunity to come down and impress the gaffer and I was thankful on Friday to find out I'd earned a short-term deal.

"I was at Exeter and that didn't work out in the summer, so I was one of a couple of thousand players out of contract.

"I've been to three or four clubs over the summer, did a pre-season at a club and trained with another to stay fit.

"I knew it was going to be hard, but I didn't know it was going to be this hard."

The U's have lost their past four league games, but O'Brien believes the club are close to turning things around and fulfilling their massive potential.

Ironically they take on his old club Bradford, where he spent five years, on Saturday.

"Oxford are a massive club, with great facilities," he said.

"They are a big club for League Two and, in my opinion, they shouldn't be in this division so it is up to us to put our foot down and get out of this division.

"We've been buzzing in training, hopefully we've got through our bad patch now and we can kick on. Let's forget what's happened in the past and go out and get a result."