Callum O'Hare scored for the first time since Sheffield United's last win - a 3-0 victory over Bristol City in the second leg of last season's Championship play-off semi-finals
Sheffield United ended their six-game losing start to the Championship season with a 1-0 victory at Oxford United.
Last season's beaten play-off finalists were bottom of the table without a point and had scored just one league goal before kick-off.
Blades striker Tyrese Campbell had the best chance of a goalless first half that Oxford enjoyed the better of.
Campbell went close again as the second half wore on before Callum O'Hare gave Sheffield United the lead for the first time in a game this season as he controlled well and fired in low.
Chris Wilder's side held on despite Oxford substitute Greg Leigh hitting the post in the 89th minute.
The win moves the Blades to within two points of city rivals Sheffield Wednesday - who are second from bottom - while the loss means Oxford slip into the final relegation place after Watford's win against Hull City.
Analysis: Blades off the mark after Wilder return
Chris Wilder returned to the Blades dugout after Ruben Selles was sacked after the 5-0 loss at Ipswich Town
Having sacked Wilder following last season's play-off final defeat by Sunderland, the win gives some optimism to Sheffield United after a terrible start to this campaign.
His successor Ruben Selles led the Blades to five successive losses before being replaced by Wilder for his third spell at the club, which began with a 1-0 loss at home to Charlton Athletic last week.
But a further week under Wilder and long-serving assistant Alan Knill proved enough to begin a turnaround as they got a win for the first time since beating Bristol City 3-0 in the second leg of the play-off semi-finals on 12 May.
The Blades had scored only once in the league all season before kick-off while their opponents - one of Wilder's former clubs - had only got their first win of the season last week at Bristol City.
Oxford started the brighter as Brian De Keersmaecker impressed in midfield and Brodie Spencer headed over in the 28th minute after a Przemyslaw Placheta cross as the hosts controlled much of the first half.
Despite Oxford's dominance of the ball the Blades should have gone into half-time ahead when Campbell managed to blast wide from near the penalty spot after a perfect 41st-minute pass from Gustavo Hamer.
A minute later De Keersmaecker saw a deflected shot from the edge of the box saved as the Blades struggled to clear another Placheta cross.
Campbell had another chance 12 minutes after the restart when his cross-shot was scrambled away before Sydie Peck headed straight at Jamie Cumming after the resulting corner.
Having failed to score in their previous five league games the Blades finally found the net when Chiedozie Ogbene pulled the ball back from the byeline and O'Hare controlled well 10 yards out before hitting a right-footed finish into the bottom corner.
Oxford could have been level late on as Leigh hit the post having swivelled and shot well after controlling Michal Helik's cross, before Sam Long headed wide of the near post in stoppage time after a ball in from Stanley Mills.
But the Blades defence held out for a rare and morale-boosting victory - one their fans hope will see then club turn a page and begin a rise up the table.
'Second-half performance was more like us' - reaction
Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder told BBC Radio Sheffield:
"It felt great for the players and the supporters.
"It's been a tough period for everybody and I've watched from afar and I've watched from close by, especially over the last couple of weeks.
"The players want to leave everything out there, which they did. I thought the second-half performance was more like us, more composed, more calm, more belief - I thought there were some really good performances out there second half.
"I think you've got to accept that we're on a losing streak, so it's not going to be free-flowing.
"We didn't give the supporters the result they deserved last week - the turnout was so humbling in terms of 30-odd thousand coming to watch a losing team.
"Today was a bit scrappy, a bit bitty first half, but we calmed them down at half-time, believed in the process, believed in how we go about trying to win a game of football with and without the football, and I thought they showed all good qualities this afternoon."
Wilder: 'Felt great for the players and supporters'
Oxford United head coach Gary Rowett told BBC Radio Oxford:
"When you play against a team like Sheffield United - we know where they are in the league, we know they're not at the most confident or been at their best - but they've still got a very good squad, still got very good players.
"I think it's a sign of respect in some ways that they came, set up almost, it felt like, to go and frustrate us and maybe nick a point or maybe get something on the break.
"I thought we limited them to very, very little. First half was, again, another really, really good performance - maybe a little bit of quality in the last action wasn't quite there - but I thought it was a really dominant first-half performance.
"Second half we knew, perhaps, it would be a little more even, but what you can't do is you can't allow one moment, one ball, three in the box, takes as touch, finds the corner, and we didn't have that luxury.
"It feels like we keep leaving the door ajar for teams to get something out of the game where maybe it should be a 0-0 - we're frustrated, we don't take our chances, but we go away with something."
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