This was always going to be a difficult game away to Oxford United, and Leeds were made to work hard in the second half to secure the win, but the result means that effectively four more points are now needed to secure promotion.

When Daniel Farke spoke to BBC Radio Leeds after the game, he said "This game was so, so difficult so I'm really happy as we played against a really good Oxford side. "We had lots of control but Gary's sides are always well structured and competitive.”

"When you don't score that second goal, you have to show steel and resilience and good defensive behaviour and this is what we've done today in a top class way. These type of wins with a clean sheet are the best type of wins, especially at this stage of the season."

While Manor Solomon told the official Leeds site “We showed resilience until the end of the game. We fought as a team. Sometimes in this period of the year, of the season, when you have just a few more games to play, you need to sacrifice, you need to give everything. The first half was really good. We could have scored more. And second half, we just fought and, yeah, we deserved the three points”.

At the start of the day we knew that seven points from the last four games was almost certainly going to be enough, taking account of our goal difference being vastly better than Sheffield United’s. And the other results could have made our task even easier, as Burnley were behind for 35 minutes at Watford, and the Blades produced a very nervy performance before winning an awful game against Cardiff.

But even with both rival taking maximum points, I didn’t think this was a must-win game, with slightly easier fixtures to follow. This was the venue where Sheffield United started their collapse, and an improved Oxford side (since Gary Rowett took over) needed the points themselves to secure Championship football for another season.

Our manager named an unchanged team for this game, resisting the temptation to offer up Meslier for a good Friday crucifixion by social media. Meslier’s few remaining backers argue that at least he’s a good shot-stopper, but Darlow had an early opportunity to show that he can also excel in that side of his game, when he got down to make a fine save from Branagan’s curling shot from well outside the box.

Once we’d survived that moment we started to take control of the game and create some decent opportunities of our own. Piroe’s pass allowed Aaronson to make a dangerous run into the box, but a slightly heavy first touch meant he had an unfavourable angle to shoot from, and Cumming was able to get down to make the save.

Then Solomon’s cross from the left eluded Cumming, but not Nelson, who got back to make a vital clearance, as Gnonto was behind him and would have had a tap-in if the ball had got through. But the breakthrough finally arrived in the 32nd minute, with Rodon being perhaps the unlikely instigator of the move.

He took the ball inside the Oxford half, before playing an excellent pass through the heart of their defence, to set Bogle racing down the right. His ball across the face of goal was turned in by Solomon at the far post, and although I had to look at the linesman before celebrating, he had been onside as he was behind Bogle when the ball was played.

We continued to control the game until the break and were first to go close in the second half. Bogle drove towards the Oxford area, and as he continued his run the ball came back to him as Aaronson was dispossessed, but his shot curled the wrong side of the post. But Oxford seemed to come out looking rather more determined in the second half, with Vaulk’s long throws being a particular threat, though Rodon usually managed to get to them to head clear.

One aspect of Darlow’s goalkeeping that worries me is that he waits a bit too long with the ball at his feet, and at one point he nearly got caught out as one of the Oxford forwards closed him down, but thankfully got away with it. It was starting to look like another of those games when we needed to get a second goal to put it beyond the reach if the opposition.

It could have come when a poor clearance came straight to Tanaka, and the Japanese international’s fierce shot thirty yards from goal thundered back off the post, possibly due to Cumming getting the slightest of touches on the ball when otherwise it would have crept in. Shortly afterwards Farke began to make his substitutions.

Piroe and Gnonto had been fairly ineffective, and these two made way for Bamford and James, though I was a little surprised to see the Welshman given his latest hamstring issue, when we were winning the game and we might have rested him for Monday. Then Solomon went down with a slight injury problem, and Schmidt was sent on to play in an attacking role, rather than Ramazani.

Which might add to the rumour that Ramazani isn’t in the manager’s good books right now, supposedly because of his attitude in training. The final change saw Guilavogui come on to shore up the midfield, with Aaronson making way. And whatever the merits of all these substitutions, they all worked as we held on for another three points.

All of which means that if we beat Stoke and Sheffield United don’t win at Burnley (which you would have to say are the most likely outcomes of these two fixtures) we will be celebrating a return to the Premier League as early as Monday night.

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