IF Sam Long wasn’t aware of how quickly fortunes can change in football before last weekend, he certainly does now.

A day after his 20th birthday, the Bicester boy was handed a start against Southend United.

With the side under pressure for a result, it was not the easiest of environments to come into for a player who had played just 45 minutes of senior football this season.

But Long lifted the mood by heading in Callum O’Dowda’s corner to give United a 2-1 lead at half-time.

It looked a key moment in the match – and possibly the season.

However, Long’s ecstatic reaction, matched only by the delirious celebration of his parents at the back of the main stand, proved short-lived as Southend’s ten men hit back after the break to win 3-2.

It all meant a bittersweet day for the defender, who is in line to keep his place in the side for tomorrow’s clash at home to Exeter City.

He said: “Everyone would love to score a senior goal, but with it being at home and putting us 2-1 up just before half-time it was such a good feeling.

“My family were there and friends I’ve grown up with were as well.

“It’s a very big moment for me in my career, but I would have missed that chance if it meant we would have won the game.”

Getting back into the line-up was a big moment for the former youth team captain, who made five appearances last season.

He was on the fringes earlier this season and went on loan to Kidderminster Harriers in November as part of the deal to sign Chey Dunkley.

While the move to the Vanarama Conference side expired without Long playing a minute, it did have a benefit.

He said: “It made me realise and wake up to the opportunity I have got here.

“The facilities are top class for the level we’re in. It was a move that was good for me, but obviously not in a football respect.

“I work as hard as I can in training and for it to pay off a little bit is rewarding so I’ll just keep working hard as much as I can to get as many games and play as well as I can on a Saturday.”

As an Oxfordshire lad who has come up through the ranks, few of the existing squad will be able to empathise with the mood among United supporters better than Long, who is desperate to improve the situation quickly.

He said: “We know the fans are hurting at the moment and we are as well.

“We’re working as hard as we can to put it right and hopefully Saturday will be the time we get the win.”