Michael Smith scored his first home goal for Mansfield Town in their dramatic 1-1 draw against Oxford United on Thursday.

Mansfield fought hard to cancel out Luka Lynch’s opening goal but the U’s threw everything at defending the point in the late stages of the game.

Smith netted the equaliser in the 82nd minute, by which time Oxford had already seen Peter Kioso sent off. Two minutes later, Gatlin O’Donkor was also shown red but Stags simply couldn’t find a way to punish the visitors.

Mansfield Town forward Michael Smith during the Sky Bet League 1 match v Oxford Utd FC at the One Call Stadium, 15 Oct 2026, Photo credit Chris & Jeanette Holloway / The Bigger Picture.media

“It was enjoyable to play in. It’s a similar story to Bromley, where we could’ve been three or four up in the first half. I felt we had a lot of good chances but thankfully we stuck at it and managed to get a good point in the end,” Smith said after the match.

Smith’s goal marked his third in amber and blue since signing over the summer. The 34-year-old arrived as part of an attacking restructure and has acknowledged some missed opportunities to add to his portfolio so far.

“The lads are working hard. For myself, I’ve been guilty for not putting a few chances away. So I’m sure the draws will turn into wins,” he told club media.

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“There were a few chances throughout the game where the ball flashed across the box and I wasn’t there. I felt the goalkeeper punch the ball off my back and I felt it go in, which was a nice feeling. That was my first goal at home this season so hopefully I can get a few more.”

Smith is no stranger to challenging for promotion and is experienced in both League One and the Championship. When he signed for Mansfield Town, he highlighted the ambition to challenge for a place in the play-offs, which is something he says the team are still targeting.

“We’ve set the bar high and the standard in training every day is really good, the boys are always on it. We want to push up the table as much as we can and be in and around the play-offs and keep challenging.”

Stags’ draw against Oxford keeps them unbeaten at home this season and stretches their overall run to 12 games at the One Call Stadium without defeat.

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