JAMES Henry is looking forward to playing at a ground which holds good memories for him as a player.

The 33-year-old scored Oxford United’s first goal in a match which many U’s fans remember fondly.

Ahmed Kashi gave a Charlton Athletic side managed by Karl Robinson the lead at The Valley in a February 2018 clash, only for Henry to equalise on 76 minutes.

The midfielder had only been on the pitch six minutes after coming on as a substitute for Alex Mowatt.

Josh Magennis restored the Addicks’ lead two minutes after Henry scored, however United again fought back.

Todd Kane made it 2-2 with 89 minutes on the clock, before Ryan Ledson completed the comeback in the fourth minute of stoppage time.

On previous trips to Charlton, Henry said: “I’ve always enjoyed playing at The Valley, I always seem to do alright there with whatever club I’ve been at.

“You definitely have certain grounds that you prefer going to and you memorise them as good places.

“You’d be surprise how much football can come down to mindset and things like that, so any little per cent helps.”

United haven’t played for a fortnight due to the international period, and Henry said that time has been beneficial to the squad.

He said: “The break’s given us the chance to refresh our minds and work on a few things on the training ground that we don’t always get to work on.

“It probably came at a good time for us and hopefully we can take the week’s training into Charlton.

“Every game in this league is difficult, no matter who you’re paying against, it seems to be a tight game.

“Everyone’s beating everyone this year, that’s how the season’s going so far.”

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The U’s have started slowly this season, sitting 19th in Sky Bet League One, after collecting 10 points from their opening nine games.

Henry though is not overly concerned with the club’s start, knowing the players can turn it round as they have done in previous campaigns.

He said: “We’ve struggled with injuries this season and hopefully within the next 10 days to two or three weeks, we might start to see some of them coming back into fitness.

“That’ll give everyone a boost.

“Even in years when we’ve pushing in the play-offs, we tended to not start too well, there’s no point in looking at the past, you’ve just got to look forward at how you can improve.

“The boys have got real quality, we just need to start showing it on a consistent basis now.”

A forward player by trade, Henry has filled in at wing-back for the U’s this season when required.

On playing a more defensive role, he said: “I’m happy to help out wherever I need to play, obviously I’d prefer to be playing in my stronger positions but needs must sometimes.

“For the whole squad, at some point in the season, you might need to play somewhere due to injury or illness, so it can only be a good thing to have versatility.”